Left to Fate
by Missyriver
Summary: Oliver never forgot her or the time they spent together. Does he risk everything to find her? Will he try one last time before his life is changed forever? EXPLICIT
1. Chapter 1

_**June 2012**_

Oliver Queen hated moving, the packing and the sorting through old memories. He had put it off for far too long and it was time to move on. Most of his two bedroom condo was boxed up and ready for the movers on Saturday. He had finished with his home office and all that remained was his bedroom. Oliver looked around, unsure where to start. A lot of his clothes and toiletries were already at the other house. That left him with the smaller closet and his dresser.

Oliver sighed deeply and placed an empty box on his bed. He pulled open the closet, took the clothes, jackets all in one giant arm full and dumped it on the bed. He needed to go through them and donate the clothes he hadn't worn in years. He pulled out old tennis shoes and tossed them down the hall toward his trash pile. He reached up on the shelf and his finger brushed a smooth box.

Oliver pulled it off the shelf and held box was made of mahogany wood, roughly 6" x 8" in size. The lid had a porcelain tiled picture of a sunset over Lake Tahoe. Oliver ran his hand over the surface, the wood felt warm under his touch. It had been a gift and for over two years it sat on his dresser so he could look at it and remember. But after five years he had almost forgotten, almost.

Oliver sat on the edge of his bed and opened the box. Inside were stacks of photos, a carnival ticket stub, movie stubs, a pressed red flower, and a poorly made green and black friendship bracelet. The pictures were face down and he hesitated to touch them, not ready to open that door. He removed the green and black threads and ran them through his fingers. He had worn it until the threads frayed and locked it away in the box for safe keeping. Oliver touched the dried and pressed flower, he lifted it to his nose but the smell had long faded away. The movie stubs were for the same movie on different dates and five years later he still hadn't seen Transformers all the way through.

Oliver lifted the photos from the box before setting it aside. It had been so long since he turned the pictures away, it had taken him longer to forget the sound of laughter when he woke up from his dreams. He took a deep breath and turned them over. Bright blue eyes and dark golden hair greeted him with a dazzling smile. She had been captured mid laugh, her head back, a hand on her cheek in the front seat of his truck. The picture was a little blurry, he'd been laughing when he took it.

Oliver flipped to the next picture.

She was lakeside, cut off jean shorts and a red bikini top. Her hair up in messy bun atop her head, she held a fishing pole in one hand and a fish on the line in the other. Her face held both pride and disgust. Another picture, white lines on a queen size bed, an arm covered her eyes, the sheet pulled up over her breasts, blonde hair over the pillow and a creamy leg uncovered by the sheet. Pictures of the two of them wrapped around each other, in different locations. A line of pictures from a photo booth, a captured kiss.

With each picture a tidal wave of memories and sensations flooded him. He tried not to think about that summer, it would have been easier if he had forgotten everything. It was his biggest regret and no matter how hard he looked for her, she was gone.

Oliver laid back on his pillow, a picture held up above him. It was taken on their last night together. Her hair was down, her face clean of makeup. She had on one of his flannel button up shirts, and he knew nothing else. She stared out toward the lake, her eyes sad, her smile soft. Oliver trailed a finger over her cheek and let the memories wash over him and take him back.

 _ **July 2007**_

Oliver had failed out of his third college, too much partying and not enough studying, or any for that matter. He was done trying, he didn't see the point. He was a Queen and no matter what education he had or not he would still be given a place in the company. Even if he didn't want it.

Since the letter and school dismissal, Oliver's father Robert had refused to talk to him. Oliver didn't mind, he was tired of the lectures. His mother Moira sent him to their summer home at Lake Tahoe, Nevada, so that the silent battle of wills wouldn't be waged in her home. He had agreed to stay low key and out of the public eye. After his last on-camera drunken stunt, he was more than willing to hide out.

By Queen Manor standards the Tahoe estate was small, over 11,000 sq ft on 2.4 acres of land. It was a gated community, but the house had its own private gate. Hand-cut granite and cherry mahogany created the two story "L" shaped six bedroom and seven bath house with a four car garage. Inside the great room had a giant stone fireplace, soaring ceilings and a glass wall with a stunning view of the Sierra Mountains and Lake Tahoe. The house had a state-of-the-art kitchen, media room, wine cellar, formal dining room and a master wing. The property had a pool, a half court, and a separate one bedroom, one bath house with full kitchen.

Oliver stood in the entryway, staring out toward the mountains. The last time the family had been to the house was for a Christmas ski trip three years ago. Oliver loved the house, but he always felt small when faced with large snow-capped mountains, facing them alone for a few weeks would be daunting, in the echoing house. His mother had made arrangements for the property to be prepared for his arrival, the houses had been cleaned, bed and linens changed and food stocked. He had refused any staff, knowing that they would spy and report everything back to his parents. Thank god, Raisa had taught him how to cook simple meals.

Back at his last college he had been surrounded by a crowd of people, constantly. They wanted the show, they wanted the cameras and the prestige of being one of Oliver Queen's _friends_. It took him months to figure out what bothered him about that, he felt alone. He was in a sea of people and no one knew him. The worse he felt the more he drank, the more he drank the more disappointment he saw in his father's eyes. He wasn't the son Robert Queen wanted, and Oliver would never be.

Oliver turned away from the large window, picked up his duffle bag and walked through the circle drive to the smaller house. The front of the two story house faced the garage and master wing of the main house. Large picture windows and a high ceiling. The bedroom had cream colored walls, wood trim, a stone fireplace, a large queen-sized bed with a dark green bedspread covered in pillows. The bed faced the the windows and balcony, so the first thing he would see was the mountains. The balcony had a table and two lounge chairs. It was smaller than his room at home, but he felt more relaxed in the open space.

He found an empty crate and went to the main house to clear the kitchen of all the food. It took him three trips but he had a fully stocked kitchen in the smaller house. He locked up the main house and took his phone and let his mom know he had arrived. He made his promises and assurance to check in. He sent his love to Thea, his little sister, with a promise of gifts. Once clear, Oliver took a beer up to the bedroom balcony and looked out toward the mountains. This trip was about finding the strength to stand on his own for once. He was twenty-five years old, he need to take charge and he couldn't do that in the shadow of Robert Queen.

The first few days at the estate, Oliver spent in the garage. For the last few months he'd been working on restoring a 1969 Ford Bronco. He'd rebuilt the V8 engine while in school in the only class he enjoyed and would show up for. It just hadn't been enough to carry him through and it had nothing to do with a business degree. His automotive engineering professor had tried to get him to change majors. When Oliver approached his dad, he had been met with contempt and was told that Queen CEO's don't work on cars. Oliver's love of cars was considered a hobby and one he needed to put aside if he wanted any right to his inheritance. A few months after that Oliver was asked to leave Princeton University, after being caught in the Dean's office with a co-ed that happened to be the Dean's daughter.

Oliver understood cars, he liked taking them apart and finding the problem. It was hard, messy work but he loved it. He had recently got the Bronco painted, dark green metallic with black trim. He had the black hardtop replaced and added a sunroof. Oliver had replaced the manual transmission, he had placed a custom roll bar and traded up to bucket seats. His biggest issue was the gas gauge, no matter how many times he fixed it or replaced it the gauge said empty.

The weather was in the high eighties, but it felt like ninety in the garage. Oliver had scraped his knuckles while lowering the jack for the Bronco. His knuckles swollen and his mood sour, he needed a beer. He ran his hand through his hair. It had gotten longer in the last year. Dark blond hair brushed his collar, along his jawline, a bit shorter in the front it grazed his cheekbones and covered his eyes. Thea had teased him about cutting it, called it his serial killer look. He hadn't shaved since coming up to Tahoe. He looked down at his tan jean pants and dirty black t-shirt and shrugged. He was supposed to be low key, no one would dare think he'd go out looking like this.

Oliver washed his hands and face, grabbed his keys and headed into town to the Village Pub. They had decent bar food, cold beer, and wouldn't care if his shirt was covered in dirt. It was Friday night and the pub was busier with more than the usual local crowd. The pool and ping pong tables were occupied and most of the tables full. Oliver moved through the crowd with ease, got the darkest ale they had, and ordered a burger and fries to go. He was in no mood for crowds.

Loud country music blared from the jukebox, but he still heard the bubbling laughter from around the corner. It made Oliver smile without even knowing why. He leaned around the corner but only caught sight of long blonde hair. Oliver walked around the corner, he spotted four women, a bottle of Patron tequila and shot glasses on the table top.

The petite blonde sat in profile, long curly hair cascaded down her back. Her head was thrown back, hands with blue nail polish held on to the table, her chair leaned on the back legs. She wore a thin black t-shirt and tight blue jeans. Oliver moved closer, she was pretty and didn't seem to care if she was noticed. He watched the table for a few minutes, men walked close and tried to interrupt but they were turned away. He found an empty table and decided a little entertainment with dinner was just what he needed.

The ladies seemed to be playing a game, Oliver tried to figure out the rules. It appeared to be a combination of _Truth or Dare_ and _Never Have I Ever._ Taking turns, one of the women made a statement, if the others had never done it they were given a choice: tell a truth or complete the dare. Those that had done the act or statement were supposed take a shot. So far she had only drank twice, her first shot was for once having sex in the open and another shot for kissing a girl. Oliver wished the rules included details. The petite blonde spent more time completing dares than drinking. He hadn't seen her tell one truth, but she did jump on top of the table and dance. He had almost spit out his food when she did the _Robot_ and moved into the _Sprinkler._

Oliver tried not to stare, but she was animated and she didn't seem to be scared of anything. She was nothing like the girls he knew, and he was fascinated. He didn't notice the other women, he did see her friend grab her arm and whisper in her ear. She sat up straight, turned her head and looked at him over her shoulder. Her makeup was soft, her face made him think of peaches and cream, she gave him a half smile with flirtatious eyes. Oliver raised his glass and nodded, she raised a shot and downed it in one gulp. She turned back to her friends coughing, her friends looked at him and back to the coughing blonde.

He finished his food and pushed back from his table. Oliver didn't see her until he stood up and she was under his nose. He looked down at sky blue eyes, dark pink lips, and a cute nose. She was smaller than he thought, if he held her, he could have rested his chin on top of her head. Oliver was a little taken off guard by the sweet smell of apples and the spice of cinnamon.

"Oh you're so big, and by that I mean tall. Not that I would know how big that is," she looked down at his pants. Her cheeks flushed and her eyes shot back up to his. "Not that I am trying to find out how big that is. I am sure it is just the right size, stopping in three, two, one."

Oliver had been flabbergasted, his mouth slightly open, his ears felt hot. He didn't know if he should laugh or take her home and keep her forever. He shut his mouth and smiled.

"Oh frack," her voice squeaked. "So I have to complete a dare and my ex friends picked you."

Oliver didn't say anything, his mouth was dry and he wasn't sure if he could talk without sounding like a sixteen-year-old. Oliver never had a problem finding women, they honestly came to him. This feeling of nervousness was unfamiliar and out of place. He didn't know why he was so affected by this tiny woman, but he was willing to find out. He arched a brow and waited.

"Well you see, I have never kissed a stranger, and you sir are a stranger."

Oliver stood up straighter and licked his lips. He wished he had gone for that shower after all.

"Don't think this means anything."

She pushed up on her toes and pressed her lips against his. Even prepared, he was caught off guard and immobile. His eyes opened, his arms held out toward her. She smelled of apples, cinnamon and tequila. She pressed hard, her eyes slammed shut, her cheeks puffed out and a scowl formed between her brows. She pulled away with a huff and started to turn. Oliver blinked once, twice, she made it a few steps away before he reached out and grabbed her wrist. She looked down at his hand and back to his face.

"My turn," Oliver almost growled.

He'd been thinking of what it'd be like to kiss her all night and he wasn't going to let that be his only chance. He stepped against her, cupped the back of her head with both hands, fingers tangled in her silken hair. His thumbs brushed over her jaw. He pulled her up to meet his lips. Oliver gently rubbed his lips against hers, he didn't want to scare her off. She sighed and relaxed against him. Her hands wrapped around his wrist. He melted into the warmth, sinking deep into the softness of her lips.

The room around him went silent, he forgot everything but the woman in his arms. He used his mouth to coax her to deepen the kiss. She shifted, her arms wrapped around his shoulders. Her tongue explored his lower lip, the touch sent a thrill through him he had never known before. He opened his mouth and danced his tongue along hers. She dragged her hands over his shoulders, he dropped a hand around her waist and lifted her up. She pulled her mouth away with a delighted laugh.

She placed her hands on his shoulders and wrapped her legs around his waist. His hands wrapped around her waist and he tightened his grip. He gasped for breath, she rubbed her thumb over her lip, her eyes locked on his mouth. He didn't know her name but he knew that he needed to kiss her again.

Cheers and hollering erupted around them, Oliver remembered where they were and that they had an audience. She looked around her eyes wide, her cheeks bright, she gave him a shy smile and shimmied down his body. He groaned when she brushed over his cock, she snapped her head to his and bit her lip. Oliver wanted to press up against her and show her how much she affected him.

She stepped back, her hand on his chest, he hesitated to let her go.

"You must practice that, 'cause you are a really good kisser," she breathed.

"Can't say this has ever happened to me before." Oliver contemplated. He'd had girls randomly kiss him before but had never lost himself in the kiss of someone like he did with her.

"I should go back to my friends," even as she said it her hand tightened on his shirt. He covered her hand and held it.

"Do you have to?"

"I should," her voice soft, she took a step closer.

"But do you want to? I might have another proposition for you." Oliver's hand ran up and down her arm, she shivered.

"That sounds tempting, really tempting actually." She looked back at her friends, two gave her shocked disapproving looks, but one gave her a thumbs up and a wink. "I shouldn't."

Oliver squeezed her hand and took a step back, he wouldn't pressure her. She wasn't like anyone he had ever been with and he didn't want to mess it up.

"You could walk me to my truck and wish me goodbye?" Oliver offered.

"Are you leaving?"

"If I don't go now, I might beg. And if I beg, I might grovel." Oliver liked the startled laugh she gave him. "It won't be pretty, you might give in out of pity."

"Hmm that does sound horrible," she pursed her lips. "Maybe I should walk you to your car, I can keep you safe."

"Safety in numbers," Oliver said with a grin.

"I'm just going to grab my bag."

Before he answered she stepped back and went to her friends. She grabbed a duffel bag that was under the table. Her friend grabbed her arm and whispered frantically. She looked back at him, before dropping a twenty on the table. She gave a quick wave. She stood in front of him, her head tilted to the side. He felt like he was an open book and she was reading him. He didn't know what she saw in him, but she walked toward him and offered her elbow.

"I figure that it might be better if I make sure you get home safe as well," she explained.

"That is very kind of you, I feel safer already."

They walked out of the bar hand in hand. He walked to his car.

"Do we need to get your car?"

"Oh no I just got to town, took the bus. Those girls rode up with me. We were just letting off steam and then you showed up."

"Would you feel better if you knew my name?"

"Actually no, I have never done anything like this before and the less I know the better. So we don't need to do any of the awkward getting to know you talk. We both know this is a _one_ night kind of thing. Which I am more than okay with. The only thing I want to know is how far away do you live and is there a girlfriend?"

"Twenty minutes and no, I don't do girlfriends," but he might make an exception, Oliver thought to himself.

"Good neither do I," she laughed.

"But you did kiss a girl?"

"So, you were paying attention?"

Oliver chuckled, opened the door for her, and helped her jump in. She ran a hand over the dash, her smile soft. Oliver ran around the front and jumped in the seat before answering.

"I noticed everything," he leaned toward her and waited. She shifted forward, tugged his ear, and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips.

"I'll be the judge of that, Captain America."

"Why Captain America? I've always preferred DC over Marvel," Oliver teased. "Maybe I'm Batman!?"

She snorted, "You are no Batman, maybe the Green Arrow."

"Why couldn't I be Batman? And what's wrong with the Green Arrow?"

"Oh nothing is wrong with Green Arrow, I've seen you smile too much to be Batman. But I'm not calling you _The Green Arrow."_ She said it sarcastically with a deepened voice. "It takes too long and sounds pretentious. How about Arrow? Or FLYNN!?"

"Flynn!? How the hell do you get Flynn out of Arrow?"

"See if you can keep up," she giggled. "Arrow made me think of Robin Hood. And my favorite Robin Hood is Errol Flynn, and Arrow sounded like Errol. So since I refuse to know your real name I will call you Flynn."

Oliver took his eyes off the road and stared. She had thrown him with the comic book talk, but she had jumped from thought to thought faster than anything he had ever seen. As dizzying as it sounded it made a crazy kind of sense. He had to know what other twisted logic she'd come up with next. He enjoyed talking to her and he was starting to think that if nothing else happened it would still be one of the best nights of his life.

"Al-right," he hesitated. "So what do I call you? Wonder Woman? Or Diana Prince? Or if I go by your thoughts Lynda? Mmm Lynda Carter…"

He really loved watching her face light up with laughter, she threw her back, her eyes sparkled and she didn't hold anything back.

"Oh, that is a good one. Maybe you can call me Princess?"

"I thought all women wanted to be Queens?" he joked, even if she didn't truly understand.

Oliver pictured bringing her home, his parents would have no idea how to talk to her. She talked fast and had a quick wit. He saw intelligence behind her eyes layered within her words and speeches. He was sure that Thea would love her.

"Oh no, a princess gets all the fun and none of the responsibility. And this trip is about not being responsible. So I am not a queen, but tonight I can be whomever you want me to be."

Oliver pulled up to the gate, and pressed in the code. He looked over at her and saw her eyes widen. He waited for her to ask questions, could even see them in her furrowed brow. He would have told her if she asked, he would tell her anything. But she only sat back and waited. Oliver felt a strange sense of disappointment.

He pulled up in front of the smaller house, reached for her bag, but she pulled it back from him and stepped out of the car. She looked around in wonder and appreciation. Oliver stepped behind her and open the door to the house, he heard a sigh of relief behind him, he wanted to know what was going on in her mind. She doesn't want his first name, he doubted she would want his last, or know anything about his family. For one night he could be her _Flynn_ and leave the mantel of Oliver Queen behind.

"Are you thirsty or hungry?" he offered. "I am not expecting anything, just so you know. If you get uncomfortable or want to leave just let me know and we can stop. There is a media center in the big house if you just want to watch movies."

She ran a hand through her loose hair, looked around and back at him. She took a step forward, placed her hand on his chest.

"Is that what you want, to watch movies?" her voice was soft, sending heat through his chest. "Because I didn't come home with you to watch movies."

He wondered when he would stop being surprised by her, he had a suspicion that he'd always be a step behind.

"No, I don't want to watch a movie, but I think I should shower." He grabbed her hand and lead the way up the stairs. "I'll hurry, you can put your bag anywhere."

Oliver stepped into the large bathroom and stripped off his shirt, kicked of his shoes and socks. He stood in his jeans and turned on the tap, tested the water and waited. He felt the air stir behind him, heat radiated off of her. He fought down his urge to turn, his skin tingled with anticipation. Her fingers were cold against his hot skin. She drew a line up his spine, and he shivered. He felt her naked breasts against his back, her arms wrapped around his waist. She pressed her lips between his shoulder blades.

"If I wait, I might overthink this and lose my nerve. I really don't want that to happen." Her mouth was against his skin, she pressed open-mouthed kisses with each word. "I really hope I didn't misjudge your intentions here."

Oliver's muscles constricted, his heart thundered in his chest and sent heat down his body. He turned in her arms and captured her lips. She had stripped down to bright blue satin underwear, he regretted missing her strip. Her arms went around his shoulders, her fingers tugged on his hair. Overcome with the need to possess her, he couldn't be bothered with removing his pants. His hands slid down her smooth back and over her firm ass as he lifted her up and held onto the back of her thighs. He walked her in the large glass shower, warm water rained down from above. Oliver pressed her against the wall, dragged his mouth down the column of her throat. He found the source of her sweet apple cinnamon smell, when he nibbled on her ears.

Oliver put her legs down, his knee between her legs. He trailed his hands up her sides. He watched her face as his hands slowly moved from her sides to her stomach up to her small firm breasts. She arched back, her eyes shut, her lips between her teeth, a moan caught in her throat. Wet hairs clung to her skin, her nipples hardened under his palms. He dragged his thumb over a soft pink nub, she shuddered and rocked her hips, rubbed her heat against his jean-covered thigh. She responded to his every touch with wanton moans.

Oliver had always been a selfish lover, more concerned with his needs than his partner's. But with her, his need to watch her come undone was more powerful than his own pleasure. She was exquisite in her ecstasy and he needed to know how she tasted.

Oliver dropped to his knees, he glided her panties down her legs. Her hands were tangled in his hair. His hands on her hips, he looked up her wet glistening body. He waited until she looked down at him, her eyes dark with desire. Water ran down the curve of her breasts, into his eyes. She pushed his hair out of his face, ran her finger down his nose, over his lips. She gave him a curt nod with a smile that made Oliver's mouth water.

He stroked his hands over her hip, down her pelvic bone, he spread her open with his thumbs and used the flat of his tongue to taste her. She let out a quivering moan and tightened her hold on his hair. He nibbled and feasted on her juices of lust. Oliver lavished her with slow and smooth strokes of his tongue. Teased her clit with a sweep of his thumb, she withered beneath his worship. His wet pants were almost painful around his throbbing cock, he shifts his hips to relieve some pressure. He looked up over her stomach and saw she was watching him. Her hand on one of her breasts, she pulled and tugged at her nipple. Oliver needed to see her cum.

He covered her hand over her breast and they kneaded the soft flesh together. Her eyes locked with his. He slowly inserted one finger inside her velvet heat. She closed her eyes. Oliver pulled his mouth away.

"Look at me," he demanded.

Her eyes popped open, he watched in satisfaction as her blue eyes darkened before him. He thrusted his hand smooth and slow, he leaned in and flicked his fingertip over her swollen clit. Her deep sighs turned to loud moans, and Oliver inserted a second finger in. She was tight and wet, she constricted around his fingers and let out a long cry of pleasure. Oliver felt her, tasted her climax, and he needed more.

"Please, please," she begged.

"What do you want baby?" he whispered against her skin.

"Don't stop," she panted.

Oliver stood up, the need to kiss her overwhelmed him. He shook his hair out of his eyes, and pulled her up against him. Her nails dug into his shoulders. Her mouth open, she sucked on his tongue and made him see stars. Her hands were everywhere and her touch scorched his skin. She unsnapped his pants, pushed down the zipper and shoved her hand down his boxers. Oliver groaned at her small hand wrapped around his cock, he thrust up into her fist. His teeth crashed against hers, his open kiss wild and desperate.

Oliver had never wanted anything more than he wanted her right now. He reached over, shut off the water, and lifted her up over his shoulder. Her cry of surprise turned into laughter. Oliver walked from the bathroom his wet pants hug low on his hips, he dropped her on the bed. Oliver tried to remove his pants but they stuck to his legs, and he stumbled. She giggled from the bed, but reached out for him. He sat on the bed and pushed down on his pants, she stood up and pulled. Oliver laughed when she fell back onto the floor with a plop, the wet pants in her hands. He had never had this much fun when it came to sex. She gave him a huff and stood.

"Think that's funny mister," she smirked. She walked toward him, naked soaking wet and seductive.

"I think it's hysterical, I also think you're the hottest thing I have ever seen."

"I was thinking the same thing," she teased.

She walked between his legs and pushed him back on the bed. She crawled up on the bed and straddled his thighs, then she laid down on top of him and kissed him. Her lips soft, she feathered kisses over his lips and jaw. Her hand smoothed down his hair, he brushed hers over her shoulder. Oliver rolled them over, he sat up, pulled out a condom from the nightstand. She took it from his hand and opened it, took him in her hands and stroked him a few times before smoothing the condom down his hard shaft. She wiggled and lifted her knees up, her hand tight around his cock, he followed her lead. She positioned him into place. Oliver looked down at the woman beneath him, moonlight from the widow cast light on her face illuminating her smile. He held his breath and sank into her. Oliver was lost in the warmth of her and his heart hammered so fast he thought it might burst from his chest.

 _ **June 2012**_

Oliver was startled by the sound of his phone ringing in his ear. He looked around dazed, he was hard and his body ached for her. He shook his head and tried to pull himself back together. That was the past, that was something that he had lost and he would never get back. His phone rang again and he looked at the screen. He pressed the answer button.

"Hey Tommy, what's up?" He answered.

"Uh what's up is you're late?" his best friend answered.

Oliver looked at his phone and noticed the time. He cursed and looked down at his clothes and his raging hard on. He was not going to make it in this state.

"Is she going to kill me?" Oliver asked.

"Nah not yet, for some reason she loves you. But you better hurry."

"I've got to shower and change and I'll be there in forty minutes."

"Make it thirty man, I think I just saw your mom working her way over toward your lady."

"Oh shit, I'll hurry."

Oliver dropped his phone on the bed, he stripped down and jumped in the lukewarm water. He was glad he kept his hair shorter now it made showering easy. It was his throbbing cock that was a problem. He lathered up his body and took hold of his cock. Thoughts of blue eyes, laughter and blonde hair, hot wet skin under his tongue and within a few strokes of his hand he felt his release of pleasure. He finished quickly and dried off. He grabbed his suit and changed.

Oliver reached down to grab his phone, it had knocked over the box and the contents had fallen out over his bed. Pictures spread across his bed, her face was everywhere. The bracelet had fallen on top of his phone and he picked it up, and without thinking he put it in his pocket. Oliver grabbed his phone and keys, he was almost an hour late for his own rehearsal dinner.


	2. Chapter 2

_**June 2012**_

He was going to kill her, how could she lose it? She had only had it for a few hours and she had already lost it. Felicity thought she had placed it back in the box. Her plan was to take it back before he even noticed it was gone. But when she woke up this morning, she had wanted to look and see if it was really what she thought it was. It hadn't been in the box. For the last hour she had torn apart her townhouse looking for it. She found a sapphire earring, a _sonic screwdriver_ pen, three cheetos, a dollar thirty in change, and memory card. But she did not find the ring. Felicity dumped out her purse, her briefcase and still no sign of the ring. The one she was not supposed to have, much less know about.

Last night she had met him after a sixteen hour day at the office for the usual late night dinner. He had asked her to stay the night and at first she had agreed even if it was against _her rules_. She hadn't brought a change of clothes and he offered her a t-shirt. She dug around for one of his older worn shirts, since they were the softest. And her hand bumped the velvet box. She pulled it out and stared in dismay. With trembling hands she pushed back the box lid, a large round cut diamond sat in a square halo of smaller diamonds on a two tone crossed infinity band, the rose gold was smooth and diamonds were embedded in the white gold side. Felicity dropped the box and let out a startled squeak.

He had been talking about making their arrangement more permanent, but a ring was not something she'd expected. She thought he wanted to move in together, not get married. Felicity was not ready for either option, she was building a company. She enjoyed spending time with him, he cooked her dinner and didn't mind her crazy late hours. She didn't want to end it, but wasn't ready to take that step. She had needed to make a list to agree to even date him, a step like this would need a much longer, more detailed list.

Felicity heard him call for her from the kitchen. She grabbed the ring box, shut it, and was about to shove it back in the drawer when he had pushed the door open. In a panic she shoved it in the pocket of her full skirt and turned to him.

"Hon, dinner's ready," he smiled.

His whiskey brown eyes sparkled, behind thick eyelashes. He had dark, thick, wavy brown hair that he tugged on when he was stressed. He was over a foot taller than her, with a lean athletic body. He prefered jeans to suits and being co-founder for a new 3D gaming system, he was allowed to do what he wanted. With an estimated wealth of 2.8 million at twenty-eight, he was just getting started. He was smart, funny, and an adorable nerd. Felicity enjoyed being with him, she was even happy most of the time.

"Dylan, I just remembered that I have an early meeting, and nothing to wear. I know I said I'd stay, but I should..I should go."

"See, this wouldn't happen if we lived together." His smile was teasing.

"Don't you think it's a little soon to move in together?" Felicity asked. She thought about the ring box burning a hole in her pocket.

Dylan walked toward her, and placed his hands on her shoulders, he brushed a loose hair over her ear. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, Felicity closed her eyes and tried to slow her racing heart.

"Lis, we've been dating for almost two years. I think if we went any slower we'd be going backwards. I was going to talk to you about this at dinner, but let's get away this weekend. We can go just the two of us. We can go to Hawaii, sit on the beach, take in the sunset."

Felicity could picture it, every girl's perfect dream proposal. He was perfect in every way, so why was she hesitating?

"Depends on this meeting. My company has been contacted by a huge corporation about my new firewall program. I'm doing a video conference with one of the junior VPs. If it goes the way it should, the way I hope, then I'm not sure when I will have the time to get out of town."

"You told me, didn't you almost work there?"

He pulled her toward the bed and sat down. Felicity stayed standing and stood between his legs.

"I was supposed to be at Queen Consolidated, but I missed my start date. I accepted my second choice which is how I ended up in San Francisco." Felicity didn't like to think about that time.

"Lis late for work, how is that even possible?" He chuckled and tugged her closer.

"I missed my bus," her voice soft. "Listen, I'd better go. Can I get a raincheck on dinner? I'm nervous about tomorrow and can't eat."

"Sure hon, but we are not done talking about this."

She kissed his cheek and he tried to pull her closer, but she pulled back. She had a lot to think about and none of that could be done here. When she got home she put the box on her dresser and tried to figure out how to get it back to him without him seeing. She couldn't call her mom, because she knew she would start planning the wedding before she even finished telling her about the ring. It was too late to call Curtis, Felicity didn't want to risk waking Paul. So that left Felicity with her list and mint chip ice cream.

She stayed up well past three am and her pro list was longer than the cons section. Dylan was perfect on paper and she could be happy with him. So why did she feel so unsure and sick to her stomach? Maybe the disappearing ring was some kind of sign. Felicity stared down at her found objects pile and picked up the memory card. She had no idea where it came from and couldn't even remember the last time she used a camera. She picked up her laptop and sat at her kitchen table. She inserted the card, and pulled it up.

Her hand went to her mouth and a gasp escaped between her lips. She forgot how beautiful he was. His clear blue eyes had been the first thing she had noticed when she first saw him in the bar. His dark blonde hair had hung in his face, but his eyes had still sent a thrill through her body. He scowled when he had first walked in, but she saw hints of a smile while he watched their table. He had been sly, she never caught him looking at her until Ashley pointed it out. When Jessica had told them that she had kissed a stranger in a bar, all the girls had taken the shot accept Felicity. Ashley had come up with the dare to kiss, _him._

She had looked at him and he gave her a half smile and toasted her, and she had decided right then to take a chance and kiss him. She made her way over to him, he had stood and surprised her with his height and broad chest. He was even better up close, even the smell of oil was a turn on. He had been surprised by her nervous babble, but then he caught onto what she was trying to say and the smile he gave her went straight between her legs and made her knees weak. The first kiss had been forced and horrible, but he didn't let her go and he had melted her with his second kiss. She had been bold and it made her feel powerful. She wrapped herself around him and reached for the stars.

Felicity had never before gone home with a stranger, and she never did again. She couldn't stop talking, she had been so nervous. But he enjoyed it and made her laugh, she felt comfortable with him, she couldn't explain it. But something about him put her at ease. He had even given her chances to walk away, to change her mind. She didn't want to walk away and she didn't want to stop. He didn't do girlfriends and she was willing to take whatever he did do.

The house he brought her to was huge and spectacular. She wanted to know who it belonged to, if he owned it, if he worked there. She'd been relieved when he went to the smaller house, the splendor of the big house would have been too intimidating. Once again he offered her an out. She loved the dark look in his eyes when he took her upstairs. Her nervousness crashed into her when he stepped from the room. Away from him, the spell of his presence started to fade and she thought she would bolt. Felicity shut down her thoughts, shut out the world, and took off her clothes and self doubts.

He was hot to the touch, his wide shoulders and sculpted back softer than she expected. He didn't move besides his muscles tightening under her touch. He didn't talk, and groaned out his satisfaction when she wrapped around him again, skin to skin. She had never been more turned on or wet in her life. He had pounced like a predator, his movements so fast, her head spun and she had been lost.

Felicity pushed herself away from the table. It was seven in the morning and she was contemplating wine, maybe tequila. Mint chip would never be able to touch the ache she felt every day. A piece of her had been lost or left behind, in the arms of a stranger that she'd named Flynn.

She walked into her room, opened the jewellery box, and pulled out the tiny four pointed star. It had hung around her neck until the clasp broke. It never tarnished, it had been her north star when the lonely nights became too hard to bare. She thought he would come back to her, but he never did. She took the star with her and looked through her collection of pictures. Let herself sink back to a time when she felt more alive than she had ever known.

 _ **July 2007**_

Felicity woke up, in a warm cocoon of sheets and strong arms. She didn't want to move, but her body was telling her a different story. She had made a huge mistake last night and she was paying for it now. Felicity had fallen asleep with her contacts in, and was having a difficult time opening her eyes. In the movies when a woman spent the night with a handsome stranger, she woke up perfect, makeup still in place. She was sure that after last night's showers and toe curling sex, her mascara had run and now she couldn't open her eyes and she had to pee.

He was sound asleep curled up behind her, a possessive arm wrapped around her stomach holding her tight. They had tumbled into bed panting and sated some time after two. He had gotten up and thrown away the two used condoms and came back with a damp washcloth. Felicity had reached a heavy hand toward the cloth, but he nudged her hand away and cleaned her off. His eyes had never left hers while the warm soft cloth, brushed over her sensitive throbbing clit and left her legs quivering. He put the cloth aside, climbed beside her on the bed, and pulled her against his chest. She fell asleep to the steady beating of his heart, and his fingers stroking her hair.

Felicity tried to shift out from under his arm, but he only tightened his grip and made an adorable grumble. The need to pee and rinse her eyes was becoming uncomfortable, and a pressing issue. She wiggled her hips and shimmied down while lifting his arm, her face was against his chest when he rolled and pinned her to the bed. She gasped, when his unshaven chin rubbed against her collarbone.

"Wher.. you goin'?" his voice was thick with sleep, his eyes still closed. "Don't go."

"But I really have to go," she whined and wiggled under him.

"Stay," he opened one blurry eye.

"If I stay any longer I might pee the bed."

He opened both of his eyes and looked down at her, her contacts made it hard to see his face but she thought she saw relief before he rolled over. Felicity rushed from the bed, grabbing her bag before slamming into the bathroom, in time before she embarrassed herself to death. She washed her face, pulled out her eye drops, and removed her contacts. She removed last night's makeup and washed her face again. Her eyes still burned so she didn't want to put her contact lenses back in yet. She brushed her hair and put it up in a high ponytail. She slipped on a clean pair of underwear and a tank top. She was slightly embarrassed by her Cookie Monster underwear, but she hadn't packed anything sexy. She wasn't sure if he really wanted her to stay longer or if he had only been sleep talking.

He was propped up against the headboard when she walked out and he tilted his head at her. Checking her out from head to toe. She pushed up her glasses and arched a brow. The sheet covered his hips, but his bare chiseled abs were on perfect display. One knee was bent and the other tan leg stuck out amongst the sheets. He made her mouth water and her panties wet. She wanted a camera to capture this beautiful man.

"Come here," his voice so low, she felt it in her abdomen.

She walked to him without hesitation, if they never left the bed is it still considered a one night thing? She crawled on the bed, lost in the deep blue sea of his eyes. She tugged on the sheet, slowly revealed the perfect male form in front of her. Last night he had used his tongue and teeth until she crashed into oblivion. Now she wanted to make him beg for release. He reached for her but she pulled away, she shook her head.

"Put your hands behind your back," Felicity directed with a seductive tone. "Don't move until I tell you."

He licked his lips, sitting up slowly and placed his hands behind his back. His eyes gleamed with excitement, when he laid back trapping his arms with his weight. Felicity got off the bed and pulled off her tank top, tossing it to the floor. He took a deep shuddering breath. She walked to the foot of the bed, her eyes traveled up and down his exposed body, she watched his excitement grow. He'd been semi-hard when she first removed the sheet, but now he was almost fully erect. Felicity sat on the foot of the bed, she crawled up on her knees, she pressed a kiss to his inner calf, and using her nails, she slowly dragged up and down the outside of his legs. She watched goosebumps and shivers spread along his skin.

Felicity moved up between his legs, she placed both her hands high up on each of his thighs. She watched his cock twitch, and licked her lips. His eyes blazed over her chest, his abs tightened as she lowered her chest down on his bare thighs, her ass up in the air. She dragged her nose up the shaft of his cock. Took him into her mouth, her nipples grazed his thighs. She swirled and sucked and when his hips bucked she wrapped both hands around his cock. She twisted, tugged and fluctuated her grip strength around him.

"Ah shit, Angel," his voice hitched.

Hips hips thrust up into her mouth. She pulled back and put her forearms across his hips and looked up into his wide eyes. She smiled and shook her head. His head fell back, he groaned and gave a desperate chuckle. Felicity lightened her grip and dragged herself up his body. His arms strained, the muscles pulled tight, an arm slid an inch from under him. She stopped and adjusted her glasses. His hand shoved back under his back.

She pressed kisses up his stomach and licked the contours of his abs. She nibbled and licked up his chest, along his neck. He lifted his head, straining for her lips, but she pulled away before he could reach her. He groaned and flopped back.

"Are you trying to kill me, Angel?"

"Not yet," she purred.

Felicity had never done anything like this before, she had never taken charge. She didn't know how turned on she would be having a strong man at the mercy of her touch. Her panties were drenched, she clenched and shivered thinking of him inside her again. Felicity straddled his hips, his cock was trapped between their bodies. She thrust her hips against his, his cock slid between them. They groaned together. She sat back, the tip of his cock rubbed her clit and sent electric thrills through her entire body. She rocked and bucked against him. She was close and she hadn't even taken off her panties. His teeth were clenched, his nose flared and muscles tense. She licked up his neck and bit his ear, then sat back and thrust hard against him again.

He growled and his restraint snapped. His hands pulled her around him. He jerked the drawer from the bedside table open. He cursed and fumbled for a fallen condom. He ripped the packet open and slid the condom on. He took a hold of her hips and pulled her toward him. He yanked her panties down and slammed into her. Felicity let a loud cry and shuddered in ecstasy. His fingers dug into her hips as he pounded into her. She wanted to laugh and cry from the thrill and utter loss of control from both of them. She gave as much as she took, unwilling to succumb to total domination.

"Harder, don't stop please don't stop. Ohhhh," she cried out.

The orgasm struck her with such force she had to remind herself to breathe before she passed out. He rode out the waves, pushing past her tight clenching grip around his cock and pushed her into another breath-stealing orgasm. Felicity pushed him back with her foot, rolled over, and crawled back on her knees. Warmth dripped down her thighs and he filled her again, only he felt deeper.

Felicity couldn't get enough, her legs shook, her heart beat wildly inside her chest. Her fingers fisted in the sheet, her arms trembled with strain, her body slick with sweat. He laid his hot chest on her back, arms wrapped around, his hand cupped her firm breast. He sucked and nipped at her neck. Felicity let go, it was more than pleasure. He opened her up, split her in two, and only he could fill her, make her whole again.

He let out a throaty roar, and collapsed onto her back, his weight a welcome comfort. His cock was still inside her, his hot breath on her neck and cheek. Felicity had never been _fucked_ so thoroughly before and she wondered if she would be able to walk. Her glasses were crooked on her face, her ponytail hung limp and knotted.

"I was right, you're trying to kill me." His voice was raw.

Felicity let a breathy laugh and wiggled feeling back in her numb fingers. He rolled off her back and she instantly felt the loss of him. Before she could protest he tugged her arms until her head rested on his chest. One of his hands worked on the tangle of her hair, while the other brushed over her forearm. The sexual frenzy was gone but the need to keep touching remained.

"Feed me?" she said with a yawn.

"Shower then food," he responded. "If I can move, that is."

Felicity pushed at him but he didn't budge. She pouted, "Feed me."

"This morning I thought you were an Angel, the sun made your hair glow. Now, I'm not so sure."

He moved and before she knew what happened he had pulled her up by her arms and over his shoulder. She wiggled in protest.

"You know I can walk just fine, Mr. Tight-ass. Hmm, actually that is a mighty fine ass you have. You may continue with your caveman behavior."

He swatted her ass and turned on the water. He held her up without a problem as ran her free arms up and down his naked back, over his toned ass and then up his back again. He groaned and tried to get away from her wandering hands.

"You smell like hot crazy sex, and you feel all sticky." She nodded her agreement with his observations. "So if you want to eat, you can't distract me with your temptress ways. Maybe I should call you Siren."

"I only sing in the shower," she snickered.

"Hmm you were singing in the bed a moment ago. But lucky for me, we're about to be in the shower. Maybe I can make you sing again."

He put her on her feet, her legs felt like jelly. She was deliciously sore, her throat raw. She needed a hot shower, food, maybe a nap, but she could feel the hollow pit of her stomach already start to ache for him to fill her. She was getting addicted to what he did to her body and she needed to get out before her heart got involved. She needed to remind herself that he was a stranger and he wasn't hers to keep.

"Now who's trying to kill whom, Flynn."

Felicity grimaced at the slight shadow that filled his eyes and stole his smile. She turned from him, scared to read too much into the look. She pulled her hair free of its tie, removed her glass and stepped under the warm spray. Even under the warm water she felt cold without him near which was how she knew he'd joined her. His arms wrapped around her from behind, tugging her back into his chest. He swayed with her, her eyes were closed, her head dropped back and she sank into his embrace. He moved away for an instant and returned, he rubbed her down with a soap the smelled like him. He was gentle and took extra care when he noticed purple bruises on her hips.

Felicity felt precious and it was a new sensation. Sure her mom had taken care of her, but she was a single mom with two jobs and a broken heart, so all she could do was her best. Felicity's dad had left them when she had only been seven years old. Her mom never told her why he left, and at seven she was too smart for her own good. She tried to find him, but instead found an another wife and a police record. After that she shut herself away. She didn't open up to another person until MIT and Cooper Seldon.

She thought she had loved him, thought she'd spend the rest of her life with him coding and changing the world. She gave him her virginity, her study guides, and the passwords to her babies. In return he had almost gotten her kicked out of school and arrested, and he had broken her heart after she'd discovered that she wasn't the only girl he was sleeping with. She discovered his deceit in time to protect herself and the code she created. She vowed to never let anyone ever get that close again.

She threw herself into her school work, graduating early with a master's degree in Cyber Security and Computer Sciences. She had job opportunities and offers and after careful consideration and research she took an offer. She never took much time for herself during school and she heard some girls talking about a weekend trip to Tahoe Nevada. She decided that a few days by the lake before starting her career was the perfect place to unwind. She just never imagined that she would meet a blue-eyed stranger that would awaken a hunger inside her that she never knew she'd had.

He used the soap and his hands to explore and learn every part of her body. He didn't know her name but he would know her body better than she did. His hands were everywhere, he touched every curve and dip. Pointed out a birthmark on her hip, that looked like a star. He rinsed her clean and she took the soap and did her exploration of his body. It had been the single most intimate moment of her life that didn't involve sex. The water was cool by the time they were done. The shadow had left his eyes, they shared soft shy smiles while they dried off and dressed.

He took her hand, interlocked their fingers and asked about her favorite foods. She told him about her peanut allergy. He threw away a jar of peanut butter as soon as they were in the kitchen. When she protested he'd only shrugged and made her a turkey sandwich.

He stared at her over his sandwich. He cleared his throat. "So I was wondering, what are your plans? Do you need to check in with your friends?"

She felt a flush spread across her chest up into her face. Felicity knew their time would be short, she actually stayed longer than she'd ever expected, but now he need to get back to his own life. The cold nausea that washed through her was unexpected. She forced down her bite of sandwich, with a drink of her water and stood. He stood with his eyes wide.

"I should call my friends, they are probably worried about me."

She had only known the girls for a few days, the spur of the moment trip and bus ride was the most time she'd spent with them. They even called her Felicia a few times. But he didn't need to know that, he also didn't need to know that she didn't have their numbers or where they were staying. She wasn't even sure if she had enough money to cover a hotel room. Felicity wasn't going to tell him any of that.

"Can you call me a cab? I'm just going to get my stuff." Felicity pushed her hands in her pockets to hide their shaking.

"Wait hold on, you're going to leave now!?" He scrambled around the counter. "I didn't mean... you don't have..I mean if you want." He stopped and took a deep breath. "I'll take you wherever you want to go, whenever you're ready. I figured your friends would be worried about you, I know I would have been."

Felicity was taken back by his spluttered words, it was something she would have done. He looked nervous, anxious, and a little desperate. He ran a hand through his hair, rubbed his thumb against his index. His other hand held on tight to the back of a chair that stood between them. Felicity felt warmth behind her sternum, it started to spread through her chilled body. He didn't want her to go, his stuttered words, his body and even his eyes were urging her to stay.

"I alway wanted to go to Greece," she teased.

He smiled, his shoulders relaxed and he chuckled. "Do you want to fly commercial or in the private jet?"

She made a show of thinking about it, "I think a private jet would be ideal. No waiting and more leg room."

"Good point. Do you want to stop and get your clothes or should we just buy you a new wardrobe in Greece?" He had an amused and playful look in his eyes.

"What girl would turn down a new wardrobe?" She gave a mock shudder. "But, do you know what I really want?"

Felicity moved around the chair, and closed the space between them. She was barefoot and barely reached his chin. She loved his wild imagination and willingness to play along.

"What I really want," she kissed his chin. "Is to go see," a kiss pressed to his lips. "Transformers!"

He let a loud surprised laugh. "So I offer you a private jet to Greece, a new wardrobe, and you will give it all up to see an action movie about robots."

"Excuse you, Sir! I will have you know that the Autobots are more than just _Robots_ ," she put it in air quotes. "They are a superior race of sentient robots from the planet _Cybertron_ lead by, _**Optimus Prime**_. Who I might add, is a strong moral character, an excellent leader, and possesses a brilliant mind for military tactics. Their planet has been destroyed by war with the evil _Decepticons_. The Autobots are here to save our planet and teach us to not let war and strife destroy our home. And..and why are you laughing?"

He was almost doubled over with laughter. Felicity crossed her arms and waited until he caught his breath. He stood up, wrapped his arms around her, and lifted her off her feet in a bear hug.

"I have never met anyone like you," he tried to quiet his laughter. "You really love these robots - sorry Autobots, don't you?"

She gave a huff and tried to wiggle from his arms. "I have seen every cartoon and movie up to now, some even twice. I didn't have a lot of friends growing up, always got along better with computers and technology. So the Autobots were this ideal race that would have understood me. My mom wasn't able to get me a lot of stuff but I always wanted a 1984 vintage Optimus Prime Convoy."

Felicity winced and looked away embarrassed, she had never told anyone about her love of Transformers. Now he was going to think she was a major nerd, and really would want her to leave.

"Who are you?" he said in wonder.

"No-one of consequence," she replied with a smile.

"I really must know,"

"Get used to disappointment," she said with a hint of an accent. She really need to watch Princess Bride again. "But you can call me Buttercup."

She kissed him on the cheek and went searching for her phone.

"Alright, as you wish," he replied.

Felicity missed her step and fell forward on the stairs, she grab the banister in time to stop her faceplant. She looked back at in him in a dazed wonder, he couldn't. He doesn't look the type to know what that phrase would mean to her. He couldn't mean anything by it. He looked concerned and perplexed but mostly for the fall. She shook her head and ran up the stairs.

"Alright Flynn, let's see what you have instore for us today," she called down the stairs.

"I was thinking the same thing about you, Buttercup."

She laughed and felt lighter. Something was happening here and she couldn't wait to see where it goes, even if it wasn't Greece.

 _ **June 2012**_

Felicity clicked through the pictures, lost in her memories. They had instantly connected both physically and mentally. They never shared the details of their lives. Even when he tried she refused to listen. She worried that if he knew too much it would all be over. And she had been right.

The one thing she knew about her Flynn was the first letter of his name, O. That he loved cars, that he didn't want to do the family business and one summer he took care of a house in Tahoe. She didn't have enough information to go off of. When she lost her opportunity at Queen Consolidated, she had to scramble to get into her second choice. She'd been heartbroken and lost when he didn't come looking for her.

She focused her pain on making a name for herself, and now the company she had almost worked for was coming to her for help. She couldn't wait to show, this junior vice president Oliver Queen what she was really made of. She looked at her watch and startled at the time. Oh crap she was going to be late.

She was about to close her laptop, when an image caught her eyes. It was a photo she took of Flynn, a few days after meeting. His arms were crossed and he leaned against the back of his Bronco. Felicity enlarged the picture. There in the corner of the image, on the bumper of the Bronco was a license plate. She could even make out the letter and numbers perfectly.

Felicity shot to her feet and scrambled for her phone. She typed in a phone number and impatiently waited for the line to connect.

"Hello?" a sleepy deep voice answered.

"Curtis, I can find him."

She could hear a muffled sound coming from the ear piece. She tapped her toe and waited.

"Find who?"

"Flynn, Curtis. I can find Flynn."

"As in Flynn. The guy you spent a week with who made you almost lose everything."

"I made my own bed and I slept in it, over and over."

"Hey now I haven't had coffee yet, I don't need visuals."

"I could find him, Curtis. I just don't know if I should. It was a long time ago, he probably doesn't remember me."

"I'm coming over. You are calling in sick, it's your company so take a sick day and delegate the important calls."

Felicity knew he was right, she would just reschedule her meeting and if they couldn't reschedule, she'd have Curtis do the presentation. She needed to make a list, and see if it was worth looking for him.


	3. ALTERNATE ENDING TO CH 2 (no separation

"I'll take you wherever you want to go, whenever you're ready. I figured you would want to go back to your friends at some point. But you don't have to go right away, I wouldn't mind spending more time with you."

Felicity was taken back by his sincere words, he didn't want her to leave. He looked nervous, anxious, and a little desperate. He ran a hand through his hair, rubbed his thumb against his index. His other hand held on tight to the back of a chair that stood between them. Felicity felt warmth behind her sternum, it started to spread through her chilled body.

"I've always wanted to go to Greece," she teased.

He smiled, his shoulders relaxed and he chuckled. "Do you want to fly commercial or in the private jet?"

She made a show of thinking about it, "I think a private jet would be ideal. More leg room."

"Good point. Do you want to stop and get your clothes or should we just buy you a new wardrobe in Greece?" He had an amused and playful look in his eyes.

"What girl would turn down a new wardrobe?" she gave a mock shudder.

"Let me make a few phone calls. Do you have a passport?" Felicity laughed until he pulled out his phone. "This is Oliver Queen, how soon would it take to get the jet to the Reno airport? Flight for two to Greece, myself and…"

He turned to her, a question in his eyes.

"What are you doing?" She snapped in shock.

"Can you hold on a second? I'm taking you to Greece. But I'm going to need your name."

"Mm-my what!? You're what? Who are you? No you can't," She started to pace the living room space. "Who are you?" she repeated with a louder voice.

"I'm going to have to call you back, get me an ETA on the jet. If it's not available get me the next first class flight itinerary." He stepped in front of her and offered his hand, "Hi, I am Oliver Queen and I'd like to take you to Greece."

"Queen, Oliver Queen as in Queen Consolidated and my future employer."

"Your future what?" It was his turn to be perplexed. "You work for QC?"

"Not yet, I start on Monday."

"That is in four days. What are you doing here in Tahoe, three hundred miles from Starling City?"

"I needed a mini vacation before starting a new job. I didn't think I'd meet you. I sure as hell never thought this could happen," she gestured between them. "So your family owns the big house. And you're living in the small house, because?"

"We own the land and everything on the land. The other house echos when I walk, sounds like I'm being followed. I thought it be better to crash here. I was not expecting to meet you, even if I had known I wouldn't have been prepared. I wouldn't have understood. I have never met someone like you and I want to get to know you better. I really want to know your name. I don't want to walk away from you without giving this a chance. Come with me to Greece?"

He stepped closer, placed his hands on her shoulders, his thumbs brushed over her neck. She shivered and looked up into his eyes. She felt connected to him in a way that she had never felt before, beside the sexual attraction and unbelievably good sex, _really really good sex._

"I agree," he gave her a wink. She puckered her lips and scowled. "That the sex is really good."

"Wait, did I say that out loud?" she groaned and dropped her head on his chest.

"Come away with me? Or just stay here a little bit longer."

Oliver wrapped his arms around her, she closed her eyes. Not noticing the breath she had been holding until she let it out, until the pounding pressure in her head stopped. "Felicity," she mumbled into his chest.

"Fe-licity," he breathed her name. It spread warmth through her, and her hesitation vanished.

"Felicity Smoak, 21 recent graduate from MIT. Newest member of QC Applied Science department. Raised in Las Vegas by a single mother. I don't need to be taken to Greece or anywhere for that matter. I'm not ready to let this end. I'm not staying for your name or the trip I'm staying cause I don't want to let you go."

His finger gently lifted her chin, blue eyes looked at her with warmth and longing as his thumb traced her lip. No mask of wealth or bravado hid his desire for her. In less than twenty-four hours, he had broken past her defences and she lost her ability to separate her feelings and the need her body had for him. He picked her up, an arm under her knees, the other tight around her back. His kiss was tender sending waves of sensual heat through her body. He took the steps two at a time.

After laying her down and taking her glasses off, Oliver kissed the tip of her nose, her cheek and sealed his mouth over hers. She sucked in a breath and pulled him closer. His tongue traced the curve of her lips. She opened her mouth and their tongues danced along each other. He laid down beside her, his hand on her stomach. Her fingers dragged through his hair, she pulled back, placed a hand on his cheeks. He looked down at her.

"Oliver," she sighed.

"Felicity," his head dipped and she met him halfway.

She pulled at his shirt, he leaned away and pulled it over his head. He moved down her body, lifted her shirt, leaving open mouth kisses up her stomach. He worked her shirt up her chest as he ran a tongue along her ribs. His nose bumped her breast, he slipped a finger under the lace of her bra. Her name became a whispered prayer on his lips. His touch was gentle, his fingers tugged and circled her hardened nipples, his eyes locked on her face.

They took their time undressing each other. His arms wrapped around her he rolled until she was above him, her hips cradled between his open thighs. His kisses were gentle, tender, sweet, sensual and arousing. It was perfect. Hungry for more contact she rubbed against him, as she kissed him with more intensity.

His hands dropped to her hips, he softened the kiss again. He was savoring her and showing her another side to him. Oliver's hands wandered slowly up her back, to her shoulders. His lips left her mouth, he nibbled and kissed her neck. His finger drew patterns along her back and sides. She shuddered when he licked the shell of her ear.

Gentle he pulled back, he brushed the hair from her face and looked into her eyes. She saw raw emotion in his eyes, it caused her to hold her breath. His hands moved to cup her cheeks, his thumbs tenderly touched her lips. She struggled to understand how he could be real and the last wall dropped away in response to his warmth and tenderness. She dropped her mask and showed him the intense connection she felt toward him.

She felt his cock twitch, and the need for him to fill her again was almost unbearable. She dropped her hand between them, took a hold of him lined him up and slid down his bare cock. He gasped her name and his head fell back. She rocked above him leaned down and hungrily kissed his lips. He rolled them until she was on her back, his weight felt delicious. His movements were slow and steady, with each thrust he moved deeper inside her.

Felicity had sex before, she'd gotten laid, earlier today she was fucked until she couldn't walk straight. But she had never been made love to.. Oliver took her hands and interlocked them, he made them one, connected in more ways than just their entwined bodies. With each tender thrust his eyes burned into hers. She felt pressure build in her core, he moved faster. She whimpered, she was close and her hands tightened on his. Oliver let go of her hands, he laid flat against her. His arms went around her, his arm caused her back to arch and he sped up. She held onto to him and tried to hold herself together before she shattered. They moved in perfect harmony, he stroked something inside her, sending her over the edge. She clenched and called out his name, he grunted and tumbled after her.

He started to roll but she only tightened her arms around him. "Not yet, I like having you inside me."

She was slick with sweat and juices but she still couldn't find a good enough reason to move. His head was on her shoulder his face turned toward her. His warm breath tickled her neck.

"We didn't use a condom, I'm sorry I should have pulled out. But you were so warm and I just couldn't stop."

"I was the one that started it, I'm on birth control if you're worried. No STD's. Haven't been with anyone in a long time…" she trailed off out of nervousness.

"I've never gone without a condom, and I was given a clean bill of health a few weeks ago. It's been over a month since I've been with someone. It wasn't serious."

He rolled until she was on on top. He slipped out, but she snuggled against him before she felt the loss. He used his finger tips to drag up and down her spine. She shivered and leaned into his touch.

"Ah yes you don't do girlfriends. So we finish this trip and pretend it never happened if we see each other at QC?"

"Is that what you want? Cause that is not what I want. I could never forget this happened, you have woken me up. I don't want you to be my girlfriend."

"Good to know, that wasn't confusing at all." she tried to laugh. Diffuse the tension building in her chest.

"I want you to be more than some girlfriend title. I want you to be my partner, my best friend and one day if you're willing I'd really like to call you my wife. Yesterday I was a firm believer that there was no such thing as love at first sight. But that was before I saw you, only for me it was love at first table _Sprinkler_ dance. It was that moment, that I lost sight of everyone else in the room and you became my sun. I'm in love with you. I know it's fast but this feels right."

Olivers face showed a hint of a blush, but he didn't hold back. "Felicity I will do whatever it takes to be worthy of you."

She laid on top of him, his blue eyes locked on her. She felt their heart beating together. She had never been rash, until she met Oliver and followed him home. Could she really walk away from him never knowing what their life would be like? Could she risk never seeing him again? The answer was simple, there was no other choice to make.

"Yes, I would marry you today, tomorrow and five years from now. I'm not risking one moment that I can be with you."

He rolled them again, he kissed her cheeks, her eyes, her nose, everywhere he could reach.

"You might regret that later, when you remember we're in Nevada. We could be married tomorrow."

Oliver continued to pepper her face, chest and shoulders with kiss. Felicity was pinned to the bed by his bulky weight and she had never felt lighter. She laughed along with him.

"No ring, on this finger," she smirked and shrieked when he launched from the bed. "What are you doing crazy man?"

"Hurry get dressed!" he stumbled to the bathroom his feet tangled in the sheets. "We've got to find the perfect ring today, and find out what we need. I'm not going to give you time to change your mind. If you're willing then so am I."

"Holy Frack, I'm really in love with you. Cause I want to do this, I want to do this with you."

They found matching wedding bands, Oliver's ring was brushed platinum band with a thin line of polished platinum in the middle. Felicity's ring had the same brushed metal finish with an inlay of eternity diamonds in the center. Oliver kept pointing at the bigger rings, but it didn't matter to her the size of the ring as long as she had him. He gave her his credit card and sent her to a bridal store.

Once she put it on she knew she had found her dress. It was a strapless chiffon over charmeuse A-line gown with lace trimmed sweetheart neckline. The bodice was hand-beaded lace with twist detail at empire waistline, double layered skirt with ruffled front hem and sweep train. She twirled and loved the way the dress billowed around her. She was happy when the sales clerk told her the price, even though Oliver told her no budget she refused to pay over five hundred.

Oliver made her an appointment for a wedding make-over. Never doubting what she was doing, the buzz she felt was from excitement. She walked out with her hair down in loose curls and her makeup light, a town car waited for her at the curb. Oliver had a team of people transform the estate into the perfect wedding spot. She was given a bouquet of purple and red flowers. She doesn't remember all the words, she didn't even know she cried until she watched the video later. But she would always remember the look in Oliver's eyes when she walked to his side. She almost shouted yes and ran off with the groom. He wore a dark charcoal suit and a dark blue shirt, his hair had been cut short, his beard trimmed.

After the ceremony he carried her into the main house and into the master wing that had been decorated in the same purple and red flowers candles with a platter of chocolate covered strawberries. Champagne in a bucket of ice. They barely left the room for a week.

When they emerged from their honeymoon sexual haze, they buckled down and called the families. They started with her mom, who was confused and sad that her baby girl couldn't tell her that she was dating someone. Felicity chose not to tell her they'd only known each other a week. But she told her mom the truth, she loved him and he made her happy. Her mom didn't care about his last name only that he took care of Felicity and that she could throw the baby shower. Oliver had almost choked on a grape when he heard that. Felicity spent another hour explaining she wasn't pregnant.

The hard conversation was going to be Oliver's parents. She had offered to sign a prenuptial agreement, but Oliver refused. He knew it wasn't about his money. They choose to have the conversation in person. It resulted in outraged cries, demands for a paternity test, threats to be cut off and insults. Oliver had put his foot down when his mother tried to call Felicity a gold digger. His mother said he could do better.

Oliver laughed, "My wife is beautiful, she is kind, funny and the only thing she asks of me is my love, my loyalty and my friendship. Besides that she is brilliant with an IQ of 170. She has two master's degrees from MIT. Sometimes when she is talking all I can do is nod and smile because I have no idea what she is saying. And one day she will change the world. It is her that could do better, and every damn day I am going to try to be worthy of that woman."

It took Oliver going back to school, finishing his business degree with a minor in automotive engineering and two years of marriage, for the Queen's to fully accept her as his wife. It also helped that she advanced the Applied Science department past the competition with new innovative technology for a smaller more powerful battery. She was going to make billions for the company.

She used her maiden name at work and had climbed through the ranks on merit alone. She had already become the go-to-tech-goddess, as Oliver called her, before her true relationship to the Queen's became known. Oliver used his love and knowledge of cars and the brilliance of his wife to create a clean air low emission engine once he joined the company.

They loved each other fiercely, they fought for each other, with each other and for their families.

Oliver was surprised on his birthday when Felicity gave him a coffee cup instead of her usual creative gifts. Turning the mug and not registering the words until Thea squealed and leapt at Felicity. The coffee cup was specially made. It was a picture of his wife holding a sonogram with the words _See You Soon Daddy,_ on the corner of the image. Oliver looked up at his wife, she gave him a nod. He was out of his seat in an instant.

If Oliver wasn't already head over heels in love with Felicity he would have fallen in love with her the first time he saw her deliver and hold their daughter, Emily. Jonathan followed two years later and three years after that they brought home baby number three, Cameron.

As a family they spent summers at the Tahoe Estate, Oliver and Felicity would sneak off as soon as they could and return to the one bedroom guest house where they first fell in love. The children were left in the capable hands of Thea or Raisa, the Queen's family nanny. The standing order was mom and dad were not to be disturbed unless it was a true emergency.

On their tenth wedding anniversary, Felicity laid at the foot of the bed her head hanging over the edge, Oliver's feet near her shoulder. They were naked, covered in sweat, breaths shallow.

"You were an unexpected discovery, and I love you more today than I did yesterday." Felicity patted the foot of her semi conscious husband.

"You're still trying to kill me, Angel."

"Not yet."

 _ **They Lived Happily Ever After or Did They?**_


	4. REAL Chapter 3

_**June 2012**_

Oliver stood in a crowded room, he felt adrift in a sea of people. The faces started to blur around him, he searched for a guiding light, a beacon to show him the way back home. He saw a hint of long blonde hair, he pushed through the crashing waves of panic toward her, he reached out, spun her around and stared in the face of stranger.

"Oliver, darling are you okay?" His mother's hand was on his shoulder. "You're two hours late for your party. You missed the rehearsal portion of this dinner and you haven't shaved." Moria rested her hand on his cheek. "Darling, have you been sleeping at all? You have bigger bags under your eyes than your sister's luggage."

Oliver placed his hand in his pocket, the worn threads comforting him instantly.

"Good evening, Mother. You look beautiful. I'm fine. I was packing up the condo, and lost track of time. Have you seen my hopefully forgiving bride?"

"Oliver, you are sweating and pale, are you sure you're okay?" Worry presented in Moria's voice.

"I was in a hurry, Mother. I'm fine. Have you seen Yvonne?" Oliver searched the room for his fiancee.

"I believe she was talking to Mr. Diggle. Son, it is not too late to move the wedding to the Manor. I talked to Yvonne earlier and she didn't sound opposed to the idea."

Oliver sighed, "Mother, the wedding is in three days. We are not moving it. Yvonne and I are happy with the services at the Westin, it's a beautiful location."

"But, Oliver…"

"No, we are done talking about this. And Yvonne has enough going on that she doesn't need you trying to pressure her. If you'll excuse me I need to beg for forgiveness."

He walked away without looking back. For months since he told his parents about the engagement his mother had been trying to force the wedding onto Queen Manor. Yvonne had been resistant and Oliver didn't blame her; if they chose the Manor they would never have a say in the wedding. Yvonne and his mother tolerated each other but their similar personalities clashed into a strained, overly polite manner.

Five years ago, after he returned from a trip to Tahoe, Oliver went back to school with a newfound drive. He surprised everyone with long hours and days either in class or studying. He got his business degree with a minor in internet security. He spent long hours working in and with human resources, searching for the right technical assistant. He even contacted a firm to start searching other companies which was how he met Yvonne. She was the best in the field, she gave him thousands of resumes to go through, but nothing had been right. He told her to keep looking. After a year of looking she told him if he was looking for a date, she was available.

Yvonne, as Tommy pointed out, was supermodel gorgeous, with long legs, blonde hair and blue eyes. But what Oliver liked about her was her intelligence and sense of humor. He hadn't made time for a social life in over three years, he enjoyed her company, and he agreed to try dinner.

His life with Yvonne was simple, if they weren't working, they would go to the gym or out to dinner. They didn't fight much, and when she talked about marriage he thought it made sense. Together they picked out a solitaire, three carat cushion cut diamond ring on a platinum band. It took Thea asking him how he proposed for Oliver to realize that he hadn't. Thea had been flabbergasted. Yvonne and him decided one day to get a ring. He was content, even happy, and most of the time he didn't think about the life he could have had if he'd been brave enough to take it.

For years he had wondered what _**her**_ reaction would have been if he had whipped out his phone, called for the jet, and taken her to Greece. He had been so blown away by her request for a simple movie and her passionate defense of the Transformers, that he could only submit to her request. He would have done anything she asked. He had no defenses for a certain petite blonde in glasses and a ponytail.

 _ **July 2007**_

After an internet search for times and locations, they had over eight hours to kill before the movie. Oliver was fascinated by how fast her hands moved over the keyboard. She had laughed at his laptop and spent twenty minutes upgrading, and boosting his memory. He had no idea what she was saying but it didn't matter, he just liked listening to her talk.

"I'm impressed Frat boy, no porn. You should still clean your browser history every now and then."

"First, how do you know I was a Frat boy? Second do I look like a guy that needs porn?"

She turned and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He gave her his best smolder look and she laughed.

"Oh darlin', you scream Frat boy. What's wrong with watching porn? I like a little extra spice to my free time," her voice light.

Oliver was sure that his smolder had turned into a guppy fish. His jaw was slack and his eyebrows rose to his hairline, his eyes shot around the room in confusion. The thought of her watching any porn during her free time had just short circuited his brain.

He scooted his chair closer. "What kind of porn do you prefer?" He tried to swallow the lump in his throat.

She kept typing away, Oliver wondered if she knew what she was doing to him. She was incredibly sexy and sweet all at the same time. When she walked out of the bathroom earlier today, with her glasses on and no makeup she had looked younger and more vulnerable. He had caught a glimpse of her cookie monster underwear when she came to stand in front of him, before she sunk to her knees and he forgot everything.

He wanted to hold her, curl up with her, before asking her if she'd be willing to stay a little while longer. But she was the puzzle wrapped in an enigma, and she had other plans. He thought he'd seduce her with soft kiss, but instead she turned into a wicked temptress. She was the naughty librarian and his books were overdue. Every time he got close to cumming she'd pull back, change her angle. He doesn't know how he resisted as long as did, but his control snapped. Her smug satisfied look was all it took for Oliver to know that he wanted her again, that he need to see her snap her restraint.

Now he can't get past the idea of her and him touching each other while watching two sexy girls touching each other in the shower.

"The normal kind, but my favorite…" she trailed off. "No, I shouldn't tell you. It's embarrassing."

Oliver moved even closer, his hand on her elbow. He offered his support, even without words. She looked at his hand twisted in her chair. She interlocked their fingers.

"There's this one video, with two girls and…" she stopped and looked away.

"You're killing me, Princess, just tell me. I won't judge you."

"Alright fine, but you asked for it. These two women are in uniform, but it's all wrong, helmets and plastic bikini chest plates. They have this huge guy as their prisoner." She takes a sip of water.

Oliver is hanging on every word, fascinated by the way her mouth forms each one.

"The women pull their helmets free and pull out his...you know."

"No I don't, what do they do?" He needed more details.

"They pull out his Wookie and he starts making all these animal grunting sounds and his fur is everywhere. But the Stormtroopers don't care they just want to get the Wookie off. I tell you it is the hottest Star Wars Cosplay I have ever seen."

Oliver furrows his brow and he tries to put two words together. He's so caught up in trying to picture it he misses the snort, but he doesn't miss the giggle. He looks at her and her face is bright red, she holds her sides.

"You-your face, oh I had you going." She snorts again. "Frat Boys are so easy, boobs or talk of sex and they'll do anything."

Oliver scowled and rose to his feet, he stepped toward her. "You think you can tease me like that and not expect some kind of punishment? I will have justice."

She stopped laughing, only letting out nervous hiccups. She put down the laptop and took a step back. She raised her hands.

"Now Flynn, it was just a little joke. No big deal," she attempted to placate him.

"You have awoken the deadly Assassin Clan known only as the Hand. I will take you down with the claw." His voice was severe.

Oliver wiggled his fingers toward her, his palms out and then he pounced. He tickled her sides until her laughter and delighted squeals rang out around the house. She twisted around trying to escape, but Oliver was faster. He wrapped his arm around her waist and dropped her on the couch. Oliver continued his barrage of lightning quick attacks.

"Say you surrender and I will set you free," Oliver ordered.

"I shall never surrender," she cried with a breathy laugh.

She squirmed and wiggled, but only managed to wedge her body between him and the couch. He was on his knees, his torso flat between her hips. His head was eye level with her breasts. Her shirt had moved up her body exposing her creamy flushed skin. He rubbed his day old stubble he had yet to shave along her skin and she shrieked loudly. Her back arched and her hips bucked, she pushed back. Oliver lifted his eyes to her face and rubbed his chin against her lower abdomen.

Her laughter stopped suddenly, her eyes were wide, her breath short. Oliver swirled his tongue around her belly button. She whimpered and scooted up. Oliver sat on the floor between her legs, his hands on the button of her pants.

"I want to lick you again. Do you have any idea how good you taste? How fucking hot you are when you cum? I could watch you cum all day."

"A-All d-day?" she stuttered with a gulp.

"All day." He undid the button. "Do you want to play a game?" Oliver pulled the zipper down.

"What kind of game?"

"Every time I make you cum, you tell me something about yourself. No personal details, just something from your life."

"No names? No details?" She hesitated.

Oliver wanted, no needed, her name but he'd take whatever morsel she'd give him. Spend every moment with her.

"You can stay here with me, for however long you want. Just know that if you stay, I'm not going to be able to stop touching you. I won't hold you hostage, hell I'd love to take you on a hike if you're willing."

"Does the game start now or are we counting last night?" Her smile was soft, her eyes warm. She pushed the hair from his face.

"I learned enough to cover last night and this morning. So official game starts now, and I know just where to start. If you cum multiple times in a row I get a letter in your name."

"What if I fake it?" she teased.

"If you're faking it, tell me and I will do whatever you need to get you off. Anything Princess, I'll do anything."

She sat forward, "I'm here for four days, are you sure you want to offer up your bed for that long?"

Oliver thought about it, he'd never slept or stayed with a girl longer than a night. But he also had never met _her_ before. Besides his desire for her, his genuine like of spending time with her and his interest in all things her was growing every minute he spent with her. Four days wasn't long enough, he wanted more.

"Bed, food and tour guide," he smiled. "Especially if I get to keep having sex with you."

"I thought that was my perk." She bit her lip and brushed his cheek with her hand.

"Mutually beneficial agreement," he offered.

He slipped his fingers in the waistband of her jeans. She lifted her hips and he pulled them and her underwear down her legs. She reached for him, but he shook his head.

"No," he kissed her knee. "It's my turn. Take off your shirt, I want to see all of you. Have I told you how beautiful you are?"

She removed her shirt and laid back on the plush couch. Her hair was up. She hadn't bothered with makeup yet and she placed her glasses on the table. Her skin was flushed and it made him think of strawberries and cream. But her smell was all warm apples and cinnamon. During the shower he found the source of her intoxicating scent, Spiced Apple Rapture body wash.

"Seeing you like this, mmm you're so fucking hot," his voice was raw with need. "Naked, legs open, your lip between your teeth. Do you like when I talk to you? Because you're so wet and I've barely touched you."

Her hips flexed, her stomach tightened, and he watched her nipples pucker.

"It's the growl in your voice and the hunger I see in your eyes. I like the way you feel inside me, but listening to you talk? You sound dangerous and possessive. I like it," her voice husky as she scooted her butt closer to him.

"You keep talking like that I'm going to bend you over this couch," he warned.

"Promises promises." She licked her lips.

Oliver's arms went under her ass, wrapped around her legs and he used his thumbs to spread her open. She let out a breathy laugh and moan when he used the flat of his tongue to lick up her excitement. He teased her slowly, taking his time. Teeth dragged over her hard clit. She thrust up into his mouth. She was vocal and encouraged him when he sucked or pressed his tongue inside her.

He looked up and saw her hand in her hair, down her body over her breast. He was rock hard in his pants and he just wanted to see what would make her beg. He sat back, her eyes went wide with shock. He knew she had been close. He stood and offered his hand, she took it with a hint of confusion. Oliver sat back down on the floor, his back against the couch he laid his head back.

"Come here."

He saw her shiver before she stepped forward. She stepped over him, she faced him until he asked her to turn, she hesitated for a brief second before she listened. Oliver helped guide her down onto his face, he held her steady and close. Oliver rocked her hips over his mouth, until she caught on and she moved her hips where she needed him the most. He gave her control and she was wild above him. He would gladly suffocate if it was between her thighs.

"Oh god oh, that.. Yes..I've never...Yes don't stop...I'm going to….Fall!" She spoke in fragments her voice high with each word.

She spasmed, and jerked above him, her cries and gasping breath sent a thrill through him. He throbbed and jerked his hips up. Her warm juices covered his face and for the first time in years Oliver came in his pants.

She collapsed to the side, her face flat against the couch. Her body glistened with sweat. Oliver wiped a hand over his face. He wondered if he was becoming addicted to the taste of her.

"I built my first computer when I was seven. My father helped, but mostly just for the heavy lifting. I was closest to my father, we spoke a language that my mother could never understand. So it hurt even more when he left because no one could understand me. I built firewalls around my heart, and pushed myself to do more, to be worth more."

Her eyes were shut, and she looked nervous.

"Did you name it?" he asked.

"Name what?" She opened her eyes and looked at him.

"Your first computer, did you name it? Did you name it Hal or something adorable?"

"Hal, nice computer name drop. _Frat boy_ may have some movie taste. Her name was Lola and she was beautiful. I still kept a few pieces as a reminder. Of what I could do "

"How smart are you anyway?"

"Hmm nope can't answer that one. That could be a detail."

Oliver sat up, adjusted his sticky pants, and looked at her. "You're smart enough that it is a detail. I'm way out of my league."

"So is this reciprocal? Like, I tell you something and you tell me, too? Or just me sharing?" She smoothly changed the subject.

"Ask me anything, you're the one with the rules. I'd tell you anything." Oliver shifted in his pants again.

"Hey, the rules are there for both of us," she countered.

"Okay, no details but you can still ask anything." Oliver thought about his life for the last year alone and cringed. He would never have gotten a chance with her if she knew more about him. He really was out of his league. "Hmm, you know it might be better if you don't know my details. I'm not proud of some of the things I've done in the past. You might not like me."

She rolled over, and pouted, "Well, now you've done it. You've made yourself into a mystery."

Oliver wasn't sure if he should apologize or accept the title.

"I have never been accused of that before. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"I think mysteries need to be solved," she explained and scratched his head with her nails.

Oliver wondered if purring was still cute to a girl. If she didn't stop soon he just might find out.

"How cheesy is it if I say you can solve me all night?" She giggled in response. "I'm not sure if I'm really a mystery. But I know that I want to figure you out. I think you're remarkable."

Her cheeks went his favorite shade of pink. "Thank you for remarking on it. And, super cheesy. But I have no problem going all night, once I can move again. I think you melted my bones, I'm all jello inside. I like cherry."

"I like cherry. My family owns," she made a buzzard sound. Oliver smiled, "a business. I am expected to step in but I don't want it, I know I sound ungrateful. I want more control of my life, and the more they force me into their box of expectations the more I rebel against them. I keep disappointing them, and instead of stepping into the role of the good son I make a bigger mess for them to clean up. I feel as if my life has already been written out, and no matter what I want, I can't change that."

Her hand trailed down to his shoulder. "So what do you want to do?"

"Besides this," she tugged on his ear. "I have no idea. I don't think anyone has ever asked me that. I like working on my car, I even like cooking but with my family...no details. It just isn't going to work."

"I don't believe in fate. If you want something then you have to go after it. Put in the hard work and you'll get it."

Oliver looked at her clear blue eyes and wondered if it was as easy as she said. Would his father really let him walk away from QC?

"Maybe I'll just be someone's trophy husband," he joked. She laughed and pushed at his shoulder.

"Take me somewhere only locals know," she asked.

Oliver pushed himself up and leaned down to kiss her. His palms skimmed along her sides.

"Do you have a swimsuit?" he mumbled against her lips. She nodded and he helped her stand.

"No hiking today, mister. I don't have my land legs."

"Not today, we can take the bikes down to the water. I know this perfect little cove where we can fish. My best friend and I went wherever we could."

"Fishing!? The closest I have ever gotten to fishing is picking sushi for dinner. I grew up in the desert; we don't do things like fishing. What kind of girl do I look like?"

"You look naked, beautiful, brave, maybe a little crazy, but so damn adorable. You look like someone that is willing to go on a little adventure with me. Please Princess?"

"Oh stop that, I'll go. No need for the big blue-eyed puppy face. But I'm not touching any fish."

She stomped up stairs with her clothes bundled in her arms. Oliver couldn't believe she agreed. He hurried after her worried she might change her mind. Besides Tommy he had never brought someone to his spot by the lake, it meant more to him than she would know.

Oliver brought a camera he found in the garage, he wanted to remember the look on her face when she caught her first fish. It didn't take her long to understand the mechanics of fishing, and he was surprised how comfortable they were in the silence. She sat pressed beside him, her head on his shoulder, her rod in her hand. Oliver didn't feel the need to fill the quiet space and neither did she. Until her line snagged and she launched to her feet.

It took her almost five minutes to reel the fish in. She jumped when the fish flopped on her line while she posed for his picture and practically threw the fish at him. He watched in fascination and amusement while she did a victory touchdown dance. He had used a catch and release hook and sent the fish on his way. They stayed by the lake for another hour. The water was cold and she clung to his chest when he threatened to throw her in. Oliver took more pictures of her a few of them together. He couldn't remember a more peaceful afternoon.

They made their way back to the house two hours before the movie. Oliver showered and dressed quickly so that she could have the bathroom. He waited down stairs going through the pictures he had taken earlier. His favorite was her and the fish. Oliver's leg bounced and his finger drummed on the table, he looked up the stairs and back at his watch. She wasn't late, but he was nervous.

This was a date, a real date. He was sure the last date he went on was senior prom, after that, there was just hook ups and agreed upon meetings. In less than twenty-four hours he had broken most of his dating rules and he would shatter them all for a few more days. It wasn't just the sex, he liked talking to her. He liked listening to her babble on about robots and computers. He wanted to know more about her father and what desert she grew up in. She challenged him and asked questions that he had never thought about.

Oliver heard the footsteps before he saw her. He saw her long legs first, she had on mid-calf high tan suede boots. She wore a short dark blue and pink floral skirt that swished around her thighs when she walked. The cream colored V-neck knit sweater was light weight, almost see-through, showing off a hint of the white tank top she wore beneath. Her hair was down and curled, her makeup soft with pale pink lips. She offered him a shy smile.

"You look beautiful." He met her at the bottom of the stairs and offered his elbow. "Ready, Bumblebee?" During their time at the lake she had given him a lesson in all the Transformers.

"Hells yea! Autobots, Roll Out!" she called. They laughed as they headed to the Bronco.

The theater was a small two screen, cash only, run down building. She talked Oliver into a large popcorn, two drinks, two hot dogs, nachos and Reese pieces. The teenaged boy behind the concession stand kept staring at her, Oliver kept his hand on her lower back and tried not to growl. Another first for him, the need to let everyone know she was here with him.

She bounced on her toes, her hands wrapped around his upper arm. Oliver listened to her animated story of one year for Hanukkah when she'd been given an Optimus Prime backpack, the girls teased her but she didn't care, she knew Optimus had her back. Oliver didn't dare ask questions, worried she'd stop talking.

Her energized buzz didn't stop once they had their seats in the back. She finished off her hot dog, put up her feet, and chatted about the Batman and Iron Man movies due out next year. Oliver teased her about Harry Potter and she spun in her seat and poked his chest, called him a snobbish Muggle and demanded he start reading the books. He told her about Thea and the late nights before going off to college when he would read to her before bed. She took the nachos in payment for his bad mouthing her Wizarding World.

Oliver couldn't wipe the smile from his face, he'd just been scolded and he also learned how old she was.

The lights dimmed and she clapped her hands, she blinded him with her smile. Oliver placed his arm next to hers, for some reason he was hesitating to take her hand, even though he knew he wanted to. He stared up at the first trailer, but he couldn't see what the movie was about, he was too distracted by her, the back of her hand brushing the back of his. Her index finger slid up against his and Oliver slowly moved with her, he felt his dick twitch and he was blown away that holding her hand or brushing along her hands was such a big turn on for him. She crossed and uncrossed her legs, she squeezed her thighs closed. Oliver knew it was affecting her too.

He put the popcorn on the ground and scooted lower in his seat, she sat back higher her attention on the screen. Oliver's arm crossed over the armrest, his elbow straight, his hand relaxed, the tips of his fingers feather light skimmed up her thigh. She shuddered, her legs squeezed again. Oliver let his hand drop more, his warm palm resting high up on her thigh. Her hand dropped on top of his, her fingers slipped between his, interlocking them and letting go to smooth the skin over his forearm and then back down over his fingers. She uncrossed her legs, her eyes still on the screen, she drew his hand further up her thigh. Oliver's index finger felt wet satin and he knew that the semi-full movie theater patrons would notice if he did what he wanted to do to her.

Oliver leaned forward, he took her earlobe between his teeth, her hand tightened on his.

"I want to fuck you, I want to sit you on my lap and have you ride me. Do have any idea how bad I want to slide my hard dick in you right now?" His voice thick with lust.

He licked her neck and ear. Her nails dug into his hand but he didn't notice. She pushed his hand into the apex of her thighs his hand cupping around the damp cloth, his thumb rubbed over her nub of her clit. He didn't see the large black helicopter land on the military base, her eyes were wide as she watched the screen. Exploding light and sound filled the theater but Oliver was focused on one thing, her rapid breathing and her the way she throbbed under his hand.

"I...I think there's another showing, later."

She pulled his hand away and stood up, she clamped her hand around his, and moved down the aisle. She brushed past a few people without a word. Oliver followed, sure he would have crawled after her if she'd asked. She went through the first exit she found tugging him with her. The door slammed shut behind them, she pushed his shoulders back against the door. Her mouth latched onto his, her tongue licked into his mouth. He groaned in ecstasy.

"You better make walking out of that movie worth it."

"Princess, I'd make you scream my name if you'd let me tell you what it is."

She smirked and pulled him by a belt loop toward the car.

"Show me the stars, Flynn, and we'll call it even."

As soon as they were in the car she slipped off her panties and told him to hurry or she'd finish herself off. Oliver didn't bother to head to the house, he knew a spot closer where she could see stars and he could make it up to her.

 _ **June 2012**_

Oliver moved through crowd, he found Yvonne talking to his father and John Diggle, head of Queen family security and a close friend of Oliver's. Her short white dress flowed from one shoulder to mid-thigh with multiple layers of airy chiffon. It billowed gracefully from the intricately detailed shoulder strap. Her hair was up in a twist, the curve of her neck exposed. She stood regal and her smile bright.

She had her back to him, he pressed a kiss to her shoulder in greeting. In stiletto heels she was almost as tall as him.

"You are more beautiful than the last time I saw you. My forgiving brilliant fiancee, I'm sorry I'm late. I was packing and missed the alarm."

"Keep going mister, I'm not sure that was enough groveling. Two hours Oliver, we are both under a lot of pressure but you need to work with me. You could have called."

"I know, I'm sorry. I promise I'll make it up to you."

Oliver hadn't been thinking straight. The box and pictures had shoved him back in time, the unknown possibilities haunted him. He needed to get out of the past and work on his now.

He didn't notice his hand clenched tight in his pocket, the thread wrapped around his hand. He stepped forward when a scent hit him, apples and cinnamon.

"What's that smell? Do you smell that?" Oliver spun searching the room. "I smell cinnamon?"

"It's the candles on the tables, I know how much you like the smell so I told the planner." Yvonne explained her hand on Oliver's arm.

Oliver tried to take a deep breath but the scent burned his lungs. How did he not notice how strong the smell was? It surrounded him, it invaded his memories.

"Oliver! Oliver, man, you've got to slow your breathing down." John was in his face.

"Son, are you okay?" Robert was beside him.

Yvonne's fingers were tight on his arm. He bent forward and tried to catch his breath. He ripped his hand from his pocket and stared at the bracelet in his hand. He closed his eyes and pictured her smiling up at him, her hand on his chest.

" _Hey, hey, hey you're safe. You're safe I'm here."_

" _I can't find you," Oliver's voice was full of regret._

" _You stopped looking," she shrugged._

" _Never," he said with conviction._

Oliver stood up, opened his eyes, and looked into the eyes of his friends. He took a deep breath and let the feeling of comfort soothe him. To ease the pressure building in his chest, he placed his hand back in his pocket.

"I'm sorry, it's been a long day."

"Oliver are you sure you're okay?" Yvonne asked.

"I will be."

"I was telling your father about the trip you wanted to take to Tahoe for you bachelor party. You'll have to find a hotel room, the house has been sold." Yvonne told him.

Oliver turned to his father, "What!? When was it sold? Why was I not told about it?" His voice rising.

"I'm still your father, Oliver and I don't like your tone of voice. The house hasn't been used in years and it's my property. I was offered a good deal and had my lawyers drew up the paperwork a few weeks ago."

"I went to that house every July, for a week. I should have been told. Who bought it? Is there time to take back the property?"

"It's too late Oliver, it's just a house. We can buy more."

Oliver wanted to scream that it was more than just a house. But he knew that wouldn't work with his father.

"I liked that one, good view. Who bought the property?" he tried again.

"It was a tech company out of San Francisco that wants to use it for their corporate retreat. I mostly let the lawyers take care of the paperwork."

Oliver had a busy day tomorrow. A video conference call, a long talk with the lawyers, and a renewed search of every tech department on the west coast.


	5. Chapter 4

_**June 2012**_

As Felicity drank her second cup of coffee she looked at the door, to the clock, to her laptop. Her cookie monster slippers tapped out an uneven beat. Normally she was already at the office by eight am on the dot. She set all her meetings after nine, for an hour of prep time. She prided herself on being on time, hair and makeup perfect, but today, she wore silk pajama shorts with fluffy unicorns and a tank top, a button-up matching silk top, and in her haste to dress she missed a button. Her ponytail was crooked and falling out, even her nail polish was chipped.

The ring box sat forgotten on the kitchen counter. Today's important meeting worth millions barely crossed her mind. She couldn't shake her head hard enough to get the word Flynn out of her head. She already ate the last of her ice cream last night, so she can't even stress eat. This was worse than the fear of a proposal she didn't want, this was her broken heart demanding it be heard. Felicity had pushed everything down. She shut it away and tried not to think about that time.

Her time with Flynn had been a moment in her life, a mere seven days, and it left a lasting impression. Their time together had been magic, it burned hot and sizzled out like it had never happened. She knew the rules, she'd been the one to set the rules, and yet when he didn't break them it had broken her. She thought that he would gather the clues she had left him and come find her, but she never saw him again. She couldn't hate him no matter how she wished she could. She did cry for him, she ate too much ice cream, gained ten pounds and coded her way into a mutli-million dollar company.

She had started at the bottom, worked her way up. She'd spent days locked with her babies until she created a firewall strong enough to protect herself and anything else inside her walls. She didn't let people in very often. Felicity didn't know how to talk to her mother, she tried to make time, but it seemed that they spoke a different language. Curtis had been a breath of fresh air. He understood her. She opened up to him and he pulled her out of the office and gave her a life. After a pitcher of margaritas and over a year of dinners and coffee she told Curtis about Flynn.

He had begged her to search for Flynn, but she refused. She told him it was only a one-time thing and she didn't need to find him. He pretended to believe her and respected her wishes to never look him up. She had told him she didn't keep any pictures of him, she'd honestly thought they were all gone. She'd thought they were lost, but here she was staring into the smiling blue eyes of Flynn as he held her close to his body. Another picture showed him staring down at her as she laughed. She had never been seen the way he saw her. No one had ever looked at her the way he did. He brought out something that she didn't know she had, hope.

Then the light was gone, and her fear and insecurities made her question everything. She questioned that it had really happened. That the connection had really been as strong as she thought it was. There is no way the sex had really been that good, it was just her inexperience, her mind making a fantasy out something that she longed to get back, a piece of herself. A part of her wished she never found that blasted memory card.

She had gone through each picture a dozen times already, but she kept coming back to the one with him and the Bronco. It was a link that she didn't know she had. It had reached out to her when she had been ready to make a change. If she was someone that believed in fate, she would think it was a sign.

"Pissh fate," she stood up rapidly knocking the chair she'd been sitting on into the wall. "I need more coffee."

The full pot she made was empty and she thought that maybe her ' _Don't Blink_ ' angel cup might have been the wrong choice for today's stress drinking. It was almost twenty ounces and she could feel the sweet caffeine buzz under her skin. She should eat something, and she would if she wasn't sure that she would throw it all up as soon as she tried to choke it down. Until her stomach settled it was a coffee heavy day.

Her phone lit up on the table, she peeked at her screen and groaned.

 _ **Dylan: Morning Lis, good luck with your meeting. Talk later?**_

"Craptastic, that is not what I need right now," she snapped to her phone.

She wasn't ready to talk to Dylan or even think about Dylan. Her mind keeps doing the one thing she doesn't want, thinking about Dylan and comparing him to Flynn. It's not fair to either of them.

Her relationship, if you could call it that, with Flynn had been all passion and heat. But with Dylan she had dragged her feet so much that it took her time to even admit they were more the occasional sexual partners.

They had met at a Tech Conference in San Francisco. Curtis had done most of their company's presentation on the first day, while she had been fighting an impressive worm program that was trying to attack her system. She preferred being on site for the conference to answer questions, but Curtis had managed to snag them the Queen Consolidated contact information and eventual lead to the possible contract and meeting later.

Dylan had approached her and they had started talking. Felicity didn't think much about giving out her number. It had been Curtis and his husband Paul that had explained that he had been hitting on her not her tech. When he called a few days later Curtis had been with her and he encouraged her. If blue scowling eyes and long shaggy hair invaded her mind at the same time, it was just a fluke.

Felicity had fun with Dylan, he was smart and they made sense, everyone told her so. Her mother had been begging for her to "snag that man, baby girl," for over a year now.

But Felicity never slept when she was with him. His pillow was wrong, the mattress too lumpy, his arms too hairy. Whatever it was, she only managed to sleep a few hours and then she would wake with a start. Gasping and searching the room, her heart pounded and it only stopped when she was back in her own bed. Her doctor gave her a mild sedative and sleep aide but Felicity hated how she felt the next day. After a few times of late night escapes from his side she told Dylan that she wouldn't spend the night. He'd been understanding at first but lately he started to ask for her to try again.

Felicity thought of a night she'd slept in the back seat of a green Branco, curled against the warm chest of Flynn. He had made good on his promise of showing her the stars. He found a secluded spot that hid them from street view but opened up to a overlook of Lake Tahoe. The half-full moon had illuminated the lake and car interior.

She'd teased him while he drove by taking off her panties and dropping them in his lap. She dragged her fingers up and down her thighs while he watched from the corner of his eye, hand tight on the steering wheel. By the time he pulled over she had been wet and ready. He crawled into the back and reached for her. They laughed while tugging at his pants in the small space. She hadn't thought of it until he pulled a condom from his pocket. She straddled his lap and she could still recall the feel of his rough palms on her bare ass. His grip had been tight and his fingers flexed when she slipped down on the hard length of him.

He lifted her hips, rocking her forward and rolled with her. Felicity laughed at the rush of him inside her again. She didn't think she could ever be done with the warmth and fullness she felt when he was with her. He pushed her sweater and tank top up, and fastened his lips around her nipple. She put her hand on the roof of the car and pushed down and clenched around him. He groaned and lifted her hips faster, his fingers squeezed and pulled on her ass. Felicity knew in that moment that it would never be enough. The wanting of him, the need to be filled by him. She was getting too close to him, too attached. He had growled for her to open her eyes and look at him.

She saw that he was just as lost as she was. She pushed back his hair and kissed his nose. He smiled and pulled her close against his chest. His hand was in her hair, an arm around her waist. She licked and bit at his neck needing more of him. Felicity's hands and arms wrapped around his shoulders and head. They thrust and rocked together and the windows fogged up from their warm breaths, it was their own world and Felicity never wanted to leave. He called out _Angel Please_ and she went over the edge with him.

She couldn't move and she didn't want to. He stroked her hair, rubbed her back. She didn't mean to doze off, she had been warm, felt safe and she had a very strenuous day. He shifted her off his lap and it woke her. He pulled up his pants and retrieved a blanket from the back, he guided her onto his chest and covered them both. She was asleep in moments, his reassuring heartbeat her lullaby. They woke up when the sun rose and the birds started to sing, he had woken her with soft kisses in her hair and a grumble from his stomach.

A loud knock at her door stirred her from her memory. She launched to the door and ripped it open. Curtis stood in the hall, a bag of filled with donut holes and a fresh coffee. She had never been more proud of her choice in best friends. She tugged him into the townhouse and slammed the door. Pulling the bag and coffee from him.

"Wow, Felicity that's a new look for you, and good morning."

"This is an emergency, and you took forever."

"I had to get emergency supplies first."

"Appreciated," she mumbled with a custard filled donut hole in her mouth.

Felicity collapsed into the chair in front of her laptop, the bag clutched to her chest, coffee in her hands. She looked up at her tall lanky friend, her eyes filled with tears.

"What do I do?" she sniffled.

"We find him."

 _ **July 2005**_

Felicity rubbed her nose against his chest, she didn't like mornings but did like waking up to his gentle kisses. She felt small against his broad chest but she was warm and comfortable. She could feel and hear his heart beating, his strong arms held her close and secure. She could stay here, the thought forced her eyes open. She pushed back from his warm embrace.

Felicity was used to being alone and this guy made her nervous. For some reason she knew he wouldn't physically hurt her, but Felicity worried she still might not recover from this experience.

She patted his stomach, "I think we need to feed the _Beast_."

He chuckled, "I thought we did that last night."

"You are ridiculous. I want waffles."

"I'm ridiculous? I think you just pouted."

"I did not pout."

"You're pouting right now, and it's adorable. I think we have everything we need at the house to make waffles. Or we could go out for breakfast. It's up to you."

"Do you have whipped cream?"

"Why do you want whipped cream?" He smirked and looked down her body.

"For my waffles. Not for whatever you're thinking, mister. Not that I'm against whipped cream or caramel sauce drizzled on your abs. But I'm hungry for more than your body, I need sustenance with the amount of calories I'm burning with you."

"Caramel sauce huh?"

"Yep I love the stuff, when it's all warm and sticky. You can't lick it off in one swipe of your tongue, you have lick over and over, until you're all clean," her voice dropped low. He was staring at her, his eyes dark. "If you're a good boy maybe I'll make _**you**_ my sundae. But first, waffles!"

"Uhh I don't know if I can drive after that. But I did notice that you are very demanding when it comes to food," his voice playful.

"Food is very important, especially waffles," she hummed and rubbed her hands together.

He jumped in the front seat, kissed her cheek, "If the princess wants waffles then she gets waffles. And I know the perfect place."

He pulled into street and headed back toward town. Felicity finger combed her hair and looked out the window. Growing up in Las Vegas she didn't see a lot of trees, much less a beautiful forest. Everything smelled different, a mix of pine, lake, and fresh air. She laid her head back against the headrest and felt a sense of serene peace. She closed her eyes, a warm hand took hers, and she smiled.

"Favorite, no detail, memory from your childhood?" she asked.

"Hmm, my parents were gone a lot so I spent my days with this amazing woman from Russia. She never let me get away with anything. Even when I thought she didn't see me sneak a cookie before dinner she would tsk and tell me no dessert. One summer, my best friend and I were trying to get to the cookie jar for her famous honey spiced cookies. She placed it high up on a shelf. I'd just turned seven, so I wasn't tall enough to reach so I climbed on the counter, my friend held me up. We didn't notice when she came in the kitchen. She called my name and startled me."

He stopped talking as he pulled in front of a log cabin restaurant, claiming to have the _best breakfast._ He parked in an empty spot and turned to her.

"Finish the story inside or here? Your choice, Princess."

"I smell waffles and coffee," she grinned wolfishly.

"Inside it is."

She jumped out of the car, started to skip until she stopped so suddenly that he ran into her. With wide eyes she looked at him, the car and down at herself.

"What's the matter? Are you okay?"

Through clenched teeth, 'I'm not wearing any underwear," she hissed.

He looked down at her, his eyes wide with wonder and mischief. Felicity could picture him at seven years old stealing cookies. She was also sure that he was picturing putting his fingers in her _cookie jar._

"We could get it to go, and head home," he licked his lips. "They are probably in the car, I could look for them?"

"The waffles would get soggy. No, I don't think I will feel any better putting them back on. Give me your shirt… Please?"

Without question he removed the thin long sleeve grey button-up shirt he wore and handed it to her. She slipped around the car and removed her sweater and put on his shirt, she buttoned the bottom few buttons. The shirt hung lower than her skirt, reaching almost down to her knees. She still felt exposed but at least now a strong wind wouldn't reveal anything.

He waited for her by the front entrance, leaned against the building, his arms crossed over his broad chest. The blue t-shirt pulled tight across his biceps. He wore blue jeans hung low on his hips. He had thrown on a baseball cap pushing his hair out of his face and shaded his eyes.

She would have noticed him even if he wasn't waiting for her. Felicity wondered what his story was, what were his details that she refused to listen to. Did he model? Did he act? Was he the sexy handyman that all the housewives wanted to hire? She knew if she asked he would answer. But would he still be interested in an IT girl from Las Vegas? Right now, she was a mystery and they were having fun, she didn't want to grow an emotional attachment that would cause the next day or two to become strained.

He turned his head toward her, his jaw clenched, his arms drooped to his sides. He took two long steps toward her. The brim of the hat blocked her ability to read his face. But once he was directly in front of her she saw possessive hunger. He fixed the collar, his eyes locked on her as his thumbs traced over the button holes. His fingers inside the shirt dragged along her skin, over her breast and down her stomach. He followed his path back up the way he came to rest his hand on the back of her neck.

"I like seeing you in this. It lets people know you're with me. If I wasn't sure you would hurt me, I'd drive us home now. Strip you down until all you have on is this shirt."

Felicity shivered, he wanted to claim her, mark her as his, and the feral look in his eyes made her want to follow him anywhere. She didn't know how to handle the intense reaction she had when he was close. She was saved by a hollow rumble from her stomach.

"Eat quick, this is going to be an interesting brunch."

They were seated in a booth, Felicity was surprised when he slid in next to her instead of across from her. She had to stifle her gasp when his hand landed on her thigh. The waitress seemed concerned until Felicity waved her off with a smile.

"Play nice or no dessert," she warned. She lifted his hand off her leg and interlocked their fingers on top of the table. "Back to your story."

He groaned and dropped his head to her shoulder and nuzzled her ear.

"Don't make me use my loud voice!" It would have been a better threat if she hadn't giggled. "Okay stop, please tell me what happened when she caught you."

"Okay okay, I'll be good...very good later." She bumped his shoulder with hers. "So there I was seven years old standing on the counter, with muddy shoes trying to reach the jar just out of my reach. When she calls out my full name."

Felicity gasped, "Not the full name? Even the middle?"

"Even the middle, to this day I swear she added more names to make it even longer. But you probably guessed I screamed, a manly scream."

"Oh, I'm sure."

"My friend screamed, his was not as manly. He had been holding me up, but she scared us both so much that he let go and I fell, hitting my chin on the counter. I bit my lip and broke a finger."

"Oh no, how in the world is this your favorite memory?"

"Well my jaw was bruised so bad that I couldn't chew and I was given milk shakes, my choice of jello and all the ice cream I could eat. When I was better she sat me down and showed me how to make her cookies so that I would never try to steal hers and get hurt again. It became a tradition for us to make cookies the day before school started so I would look forward to the next day."

"Wow that is awesome. She sounds amazing."

"She is, I don't think I've ever told her that."

"Maybe you should." She brushed her thumb over his knuckles.

"Your turn," he bent down and kissed her thumb.

The waitress arrived for their order and brought her coffee. Felicity was excited to try the chocolate chip waffle with whipped cream and strawberries. Flynn ordered the lobster eggs benedict with a side of chicken apple sausage. She sipped her coffee and thought about her life.

"Growing up with a single mom with two jobs, meant a lot of time alone. My mom worked really hard and she tried the best she could to give me what I needed. But when you have a genius level kid who devoured books, like I'm going to eat this waffle, mmmm looks so good. Do you want a bite?"

"I'm saving my sweet tooth for the caramel drizzle," he smirked when her cheeks got warm.

Without asking he gave her half his sausage and offered a fork full of his breakfast. She smiled at him and accepted his offer. Everything was delicious and worth the detour. Felicity groaned and dug into her waffles, she felt his eyes on her and his thigh pressed against hers.

"If I'm not allowed to touch then you are not allowed to make those noises," he whispered against her ear, his jean covered leg rubbed against her bare thigh.

"But it tastes so good in my mouth," she sighed deeply.

A table of two guys near them turned to look at her. Felicity took another perfect bite and ignored everything but the man beside her. She pulled out her phone and turned on her camera. She wanted at least one picture of him. He had tuned his hat around and had dropped his forehand on her shoulder. Felicity arched a brow and pouted. She snapped the photo and laughed.

"Hey, I wasn't ready," he grumbled.

He pulled her against him, took her phone and snapped a few more selfies of them. They made faces, he kissed her hair, put his hat on her head. He made her laugh and he watched her with a look of awe. Felicity felt more beautiful in that moment then she had ever felt before. He brought out her inner light and made her shine brighter.

"Keep talking, I want to hear more. Whatever you're willing to share?" His voice sweet and kind.

His arm was around her shoulders, and she snuggled into his warmth.

"I wanted to go to space camp, and I begged even when I knew she couldn't afford it. I don't even know why I wanted it so bad, besides well space camp. I locked myself in my room for almost two weeks and wouldn't talk to her. I think I was just mad at everything and everyone. Computer and tech helped keep me grounded. I've been ranked nationally, but I can't talk about that, too many details."

She trailed off, her story going nowhere.

"You up for that hike today? I want to show you something."

"What about dessert?" she perused her lips and squinted at him.

"Later. Let's head home, change and go for a hike. We can pack lunch and eat near the waterfall."

"Waterfall you say? Hmm you have my attention."

"We can see how you're doing when we get there because the trail gets a bit harder after that," he warned.

"Bring it, Frat Boy," she thumped his shoulder. "Of course this hike will require payment of a full body massage, and homemade cookies."

He turned to her, his smile bright. "You make it to the summit, Princess, and you'll get anything you want. I'll even steal the stars for you."

"Deal."

Felicity extended her hand, he took it and shook it once before lifting it to his mouth.

She regretted it about three miles into the summit hike. Her calves were burning and her lungs were tight. She was sweating as her breakfast calories burned away. She had made a deal with the blue-eyed devil, he had charmed her into giving in. Now she was going to die on a trail in Tahoe, Nevada. She should have left a note, telling her mom how sorry she for being an ungrateful, horrible child. Felicity refused to whine or beg to be carried, but it was close. She couldn't believe she'd agreed to this, she wasn't a hiker. She didn't even jog.

To make it worse, her devil was beaming with happiness. He pointed out trees, birds and rocks. Felicity loved the way he was excited, even if the hike was killing her. He took constant stops, saying he needed a break, but Felicity knew it was for her benefit. She took every second she could to rest. He carried the bag with their lunch and water bottles. He gave her some of his water when she drank hers. He was sweet and held her hand. If she was going to die at least it was beside this fallen angel.

"I won't let you die."

"Ha, that would be more convincing if your weren't taking me on a death march," she huffed out.

"We can turn back."

"Never! I will get my massage and now I'm adding on a bubble bath. Ohh, look at the flowers."

Felicity saw a sloping hill of wildflowers. Purple, yellow, and orange flowers of different shapes and sizes. She skimmed her fingers over the colorful petals. She took a couple pictures with her phone. He leaned against a tree watching her, a camera in his hands. Felicity smiled bright, grateful for this simple moment. She spotted a small bush of wild red roses. She found and picked a small fragrant bloom. She walked toward him the flower behind her back. He took her picture again before she stood in front of him.

"In case I forget to say it later, thank you for taking me on this hike. It's beautiful." She beamed.

Felicity offered him the flower with a nervous smile. She had no idea how he would react to the offered gift. His fingers wrapped around her hand holding the flower and he pulled her close. He brushed a kiss over her cheek, then her nose, over to her other cheek. He leaned back a bit and smiled before kissing her softly on the lips.

"Thank you for coming with me, you are doing amazing," he praised. "I only heard one death threat."

"Alright I'm ready let's, Roll Out! I have a summit to climb and a bubble bath in my future."

"And I have dessert to plan."

Felicity turned to him her, she looked up and down his body, enjoying the view, showing her appreciation and there was a lot to appreciate. She gave him an over the top drawn out wink, with her mouth open. She was rewarded by his laughter.

The summit had a view of the lake and mountains below. It was breathtaking. She stood at the top of the world and she felt small. He stood beside her, his hand in hers. She rested her head on his arm.

"This is what I wanted to show you. This vast beautiful world is ready when you are, and I've never seen anything so beautiful."

She looked up at him, and he was already looking down at her, his eyes sparkled with tender affection that she wasn't expecting.

 _ **June 2012**_

"You make it sound so easy, just go find him. But why should I, he didn't call me. He didn't try to find me. Is it really that easy to just go looking for him?"

"Yes," Curtis started.

"Yes, we had an amazing time together. He was perfect and sweet and wonderful, and yes he kept wanting more information about me, so he was obviously interested. But then I didn't hear from him, so he couldn't have been that interested right?"

"Well you should…"

"So maybe I shouldn't try to find him," She paced the kitchen, the donut hole bag in her hands. "But something could've happened to his phone and that's why he didn't call, and I definitely should try and find him, right?"

"Absolutely..."

Felicity tugged on her bottom lip, deaf to everything outside her head.

"Except Occam's razor," she proclaimed loudly

"What? Felicity come on."

"I shouldn't be making excuses for him to overly complicate what happened. Simplest answer is the right one, so he didn't want anything more. He told me himself he didn't do girlfriends. Why would I be any different?"

"Trust me Felicity, you are very different."

"We agreed to a week, it was just one damn week. But I lost myself in him, he was changing me."

She slammed her hand down on the counter.

"But if I don't find him, I'll never get to feel him do that thing he did with his tongue…" She trailed off.

Curtis threw up his hands, "Whoa, too much info."

"Curtis he could shatter me…" Her voice soft and fragile.

Curtis was reaching for her, she shook off his hands.

"Oh by Google, listen to me. He could be married with kids. He's probably fat and bald. His perfect lickable eight pack gone into a 12 pack of beer belly." She closed her eyes for an instant trying to pull herself free of her whirlwind. Her eyes met Curtis', her heart throbbed with yearning. "What if he forgot me?"

"I don't think anyone that has ever met you could forget you Felicity."

"What if I remember him wrong and he isn't as amazing as I think, I thought he was!?" She tilted her head and wondered if that made sense. "What if he's completely moved on and I show up and I'm the weird girl who held onto something for five years." She dropped into a chair and dropped her head between her legs.

"Felicity, I have never seen you this worked up before."

"Five years Curtis, five. Why can't I forget this guy that I spent seven days with?"

He sat down next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Because maybe you were destined to find each other. Maybe he's the perfect other half for you. Maybe the universe is just waiting for you to get off your ass and go get him. Or, maybe it's just because he gave you the best sex of your life."

Felicity nodded her head, "It was really good sex… lots of really good sex. But I can't stop everything to find him. I have a meeting in," she looked at her watch. "Oh god twenty minutes. I have to change my shirt."

"And brush your hair." Curtis called out. "I will add one thing Felicity.. You have never tried to look for him. But you've been waiting for years for him to come back. So I'm going to say this one more time, yes we are going to look for him. We are going to find out why he didn't call, and if it's not good enough, then you are going to move on. You will never truly give anyone else, including Dylan, a real chance until you do."

Felicity stared at him from her bedroom doorway. She took a deep breath, her star in her hand, she wondered if it would take her home or lead her in a whole new direction.

"So do I finally get to see what this Flynn looks like?" Curtis rubbed his hands together, glee and curiosity in his eyes.

"Laptop, you know the password."

"Rollout05?"

"That's the one," her voice carried from her room.

Curtis opened the pictures, the guy was good looking. Taller than Felicity, broad shoulders, muscular arms and chest. Curtis had never seen the bright shining smile on Felicity's face. She had been better, but never like this. The guy she called Flynn only had eyes for her, in every picture, he was either smiling or watching her. Curtis was sure that, whatever happened between these two, it was completely mutual.

One close up caught his eye, he squinted and covered up his forehead.

"Hey Felicity you know he kind of looks…"

"Curtis if you say Oliver Queen I am going to scream. Ever since you met him, and you got your crush on him you've been seeing his face everywhere."

"Hey, I don't have a crush on him, I am happily married. Alright, you're right. Oliver is way more intense than this guy."

"Sure, make sure you tell Paul I'm sorry if I woke him."

Felicity's phone started to ring on the table, she stumbled from the room and reached for it.

"Hello this is Felicity?"

"Hello Miss Smoak, this is Jennifer from the Donovan Group."

"Yes, Jennifer hello. Do you have the paperwork for me to sign?"

"No Miss Smoak, I was calling because there has been another offer placed on the house."

"What do you mean? I thought the owner was ready to accept my offer and we were going forward with the inspection."

"According to the owner's lawyers he hasn't agreed yet, and this other buyer is insistent that he purchases the house."

"No, I can't lose that house."

"We do have other properties..

"No, this is the only property that I want. I need the name of the buyer. I need the lawyer. I'm not walking away from this because someone thinks they have the rights to my house."

Felicity was furious, she will find out who would dare try to take that house from her.

"Curtis, I'm going to need you to handle your crush, I have some asshole trying to undercut me on the Tahoe house and I can't lose it now."

"I do not have a crush on him, but I will enjoy the view."

"Take the call in my private office, I might need my loud voice for this next call."

"Felicity, we are going to find him and you can tell him how you really feel."

"Sick to my stomach," she offered with a shaking hand.


	6. Chapter 5

**June 2012**

John Diggle was the head of the Queen family private security for almost three years. When he had taken the job, he researched the family and figured his biggest challenge would be party boy Oliver "Ollie" Queen, even if he had managed to stay out of the papers for a few years. John had been surprised when they had finally met; Oliver was serious, and reserved.

Oliver kept to himself, stayed home and rarely went out at night. He worked long hours at QC and his employees respected him and respected that he was always on the lookout for hot new talent in the tech field. He went to every conference he could, he was thorough and dedicated. The friendship between them grew slowly, it started with jogs through the Queen property and talking about football. Soon Oliver joined him in the gym and John taught Oliver self defense.

John had never seen him angry, never heard him raise his voice. The eldest Queen was even-tempered, unrattled by anything. That also extended to his personal relationships. On anyone else, John would regard the manner in which Oliver treated his mother, father, and even his girlfriend (now fiancee) as businesslike. But, he'd come to recognize that was just who Oliver was. The only two people he'd seen as exceptions to that rule were Thea Queen and Tommy Merlyn. Oliver was open and smiled more when he was with his sister; he was softer. Tommy made him laugh with lifelong shared memories of inside jokes and stories.

John liked Yvonne, everyone liked Yvonne. She was kind, funny, and smart. Oliver and her made the perfect corporate couple. She accepted that Oliver preferred to stay out of the public eye, and avoided the paparazzi as much as possible. That was his old life, that had been Ollie's life and Oliver wanted nothing to do with it. Together the couple complimented each had some reservations about them but he kept them to himself.

John knew about the week-long trips in July to Tahoe, and that Oliver always went alone. When he returned he locked himself away in his office or in the gym, his mood dark. Everyone knew to avoid him until he reemerged. His work improved, his focus on finding the next rising star at QC laser sharp. That was the closest Oliver came to extreme emotions, until the night before, at the rehearsal dinner.

Oliver never panicked, he didn't have anxiety, but last night he had a full blown panic attack. John thought it had to do with the upcoming wedding and Oliver getting cold feet. John had seen it before and figured that Oliver needed a few days away from the stress of the day to get his head on straight.

John had tried calling Oliver, but he didn't answer. John had made sure he got home the night before, so he knew he should be home. When he went to his house at six-thirty for their normal morning run, Oliver was already gone. Most days Oliver would in the office by eight, it was rare for him to be out this early. John contacted QC front desk, and confirmed that Oliver had arrived at work around five in the morning and had not left his office since. John rushed home to change out of his running gear and headed downtown to check on his friend, his concern growing.

John heard Oliver before he saw him.

"Don't tell me there is nothing you can do! How are you going to fix it!?" he bellowed from behind a closed door.

John had never heard Oliver talk to anyone that way. He slowly walked toward the office and gave it a quick rap of his knuckle before pushing the door open. Oliver paced behind the desk, cell phone pressed to his ear. He had taken off his suit coat, loosened his tie, his sleeves rolled up his forearms. He dragged his fingers through his normaly styled hair, the dark circles under his eyes told John he hadn't slept.

Oliver looked up when John walked in, but turned his back and continued his barrage.

"It never should have been on the market in the first place, so how did someone try to buy it? What!? No that is not possible, why was I not told. I don't care that the property is in my father's name. It is my house! No! I will not accept that! I don't care what you tell them. Tell them it is not for sale, and that you lost the damn offer letter."

John had heard about the Tahoe house being sold last night and he had thought that the paperwork was final. He assumed Oliver was on the phone with the lawyers and trying to stop the purchase. John had never been to the house, he figured it was nice place, but could it really be this important that Oliver is waking up a firm of lawyers to keep it? Couldn't he buy another house?

"No, that is not an option. I will buy them out if I have to, but they are not getting that house. I am aware of the time and I don't care. When this is over I want the property in my name. You better have answers when you call me back. And don't keep me waiting."

Oliver slapped the phone onto the desk, his head and shoulders down. John could see the tension in his arms making his muscles jump. His hands in tight fists.

"What's going on Oliver? I have never seen you like this."

"Dig, I don't have time to explain. I have more phone calls to make. Where the hell is Roy, with my reports!?"

"Your assistant probably won't be here for another hour. It's just after seven in the morning."

"I know what time it is. I have a watch. I called him into the office early." Oliver snapped.

John's eyebrow shot up and his head reared back as if he was struck.

"Why? Is this about the house?"

"It's more than a damn house, and I am tired of explaining that to people."

Oliver spun away from John and looked up at large framed print of a lake behind his desk. Oliver told him once that it was the view from the Tahoe house. John always wondered why he kept the photo, he assumed by past behavior that the house held bad memories for Oliver. But maybe there was more to the story.

"It's all I have left and I can't let it go," he sighed.

"Alright, what do the lawyers say?"

"They claim that another firm contacted them about the property. It was never on the market, but a large offer was made, way above the market price. The other buyer is keeping their name out of the bidding war and the other firm is calling it confidential without the other parties approval. So I can't even find the person and tell them to back off."

"But, if it was never on the market, and it's a Queen property, can't you just not sell it? Problem solved."

"My father told the lawyers to sell and they started the closing process," Oliver said through his teeth. "Shit the buyer even waved inspection to speed up the process, claimed they wanted it as is." Oliver slapped his hand on the desk, "who does that!?"

"I don't know man, sounds crazy to me, unless they're just as desperate as you."

Oliver glared at him, "I am not desperate, I am determined."

John crossed his arms over his broad chest and stared back at Oliver and tried not to roll his eyes.

"Sure whatever helps you sleep at night. Got to admit, Oliver, this is a whole new look for you, defensive AND _desperate_. What is so important about this house?"

"Don't you know the story, Dig? That's where Oliver's life changed. Where he met his _Angel_." said the new voice behind him.

Tommy strolled through the office door. He carried a pink pastry box and cardboard carafe of coffee. Roy followed behind him with a trolley of boxes full of folders. Tommy placed his offering in front of Oliver and opened the box of donuts.

"I told you to never call her that," Oliver grumbled, but he accepted a donut before heading to the boxes.

Tommy shrugged, "but isn't that what _you_ call her?"

Oliver stopped and looked at his longtime friend, "it's what I call her, not you."

John's jaw dropped for an instant, Oliver had never sounded so threatening before and it was to his best friend. Tommy didn't even register the cold tone and only waved a hand at Oliver while he pulled out his own donut. He looked up at John.

"Yeah, you might want to add overprotective asshat to that list. And Ollie, if you had done a better job of getting her real name, I'd be more than happy to call her that," Tommy smirked at his friend.

John looked between the men and the tension built and snapped with a loud groan from Oliver. He shoved the donut in his mouth and turned his back on all of them.

"Noted and acknowledged. I still have no idea who you are talking about or what that has to do with a house in Tahoe. I know one thing - this has nothing to do with Yvonne or the wedding."

"Oh, no. Definitely not Yvonne. If you have ever heard him talk about _HER_ , you'd know right away that Oliver did way more than tolerate his Angel Girl." Tommy waggled his eyebrows and lowered his voice to just above sleezy.

"Tommy, I am warming you. Never talk about her that way." Oliver growled.

"I know, I know, Ollie she was the _**best**_ thing to ever happen to you. So touchy." Tommy turns to John. "Basically, Oliver was in a grunge phase and was moping about after getting kicked from another school. He went to his family's cabin for awhile. He met a girl at a local bar and took her home, nothing new there for Ollie. But this girl had magical Ollie-Taming powers."

A low deep growl came from the corner of the office. Roy stared at Oliver in fear and slowly backed away. Tommy ignored him and poured a cup of coffee.

"And over the next week, she and Oliver fell hopelessly in love. And I say hopelessly because of this," Tommy raised his hand ticking off fingers. "They exchanged no names, no personal details, no way to get in contact with one another. Except for maybe she might have put her contact details into a phone that Oliver promptly lost, accidentally of course."

John watched Oliver's head drop to his chest, the weight of the story or the memories too hard to face. His eyes were closed, his face pale.

"She disappeared into the ether, never to be heard from again, and Oliver's been searching for her on and off ever since."

John shook his head in wonder, none of this sounded like the man he knew.

"Wait, who the hell doesn't get a girl's name when you spend a week with them!?" John scoffed.

Tommy sat in Oliver's chair. "That's the fun part. They had rules. Her rules. No personal details. She apparently called him Flynn and you know what he called her?"

"Her rules? Flynn? Why the hell..? That's ridiculous!?" John sputtered. "My guess is Angel?"

"Yep. Confusing as hell, right? She's the _**best**_ thing to ever happen to him and he let her go."

Oliver slammed a fist down onto the table, "I did not let her go! She left and I was supposed to follow. Now if you two are finished, I have work to do, a house to save and a woman to find. Please leave or pick up a file and help find her."

John looked down at the files. Employee records from different companies. He was sure that most of this information was supposed to be sealed.

"I brought coffee and donuts, you know I'm not leaving." Tommy burst out.

"How do you want me to help?" John offered.

Oliver handed each of them a box, "these are the employee records for every corporate company on the west coast with an technical department."

"We do this every year around this time," Tommy murmured.

"So how long have you guys been looking for her?" John wondered.

"Five years," Tommy groaned.

"Five years," Oliver sighed.

John's eyes widened, damn five years and Oliver had never stopped looking.

"Wait couldn't she have moved? Why only the West Coast?" John asked.

"I don't know the details, but something happened back east that made her swear she would never go back. She seemed both sad and a little nervous talking about it," Oliver explained.

"Okay, West Coast it is. But if you don't know this girl's name how will records help?"

Tommy nodded along, rolling his head back and forth. John figured after five years this questions had been asked before but he was a new pair of eyes, maybe he can offer a different perspective.

"She's a certified genius. Brilliant with computers. She should be about twenty-six years old now," Oliver brightened as he talked about her. "She is remarkable and would stand out in any IT department."

"Then wouldn't you have found her already?"

Oliver stepped up in John's face, his eyes wide anger radiated off his skin.

"Don't you think I've thought about all of this before? Thought that she could be married, moved, gone? I've told myself to move on. To keep on living each day. I care about Yvonne, I am willing to marry her. But _**HER**_ ," Oliver stepped back and covered his face. "There is nothing that can compare to how I feel about her."

"Hey Oliver. I'm not trying to rain on your parade here. I'm just saying, trying all of the things that have failed you before isn't going to get you anywhere. Let's brainstorm some other ideas. You said she's genius level smart, maybe there is a news story about her. Maybe Oliver Queen calls the heads of some of the top new tech companies on the West Coast. Here's a thought- what if she started her own company? Then these employment records wouldn't help you."

"Shit, you're right." Oliver picked up his office phone reached out to Roy. "I need every tech magazine, every dedicated tech website. Hell, get me the brochures from every tech conference for the last three years. I need a web search on genius women under thirty."

Roy's voice echoed through the speaker. "Sir, I will get on this right away. Also you have a video conference in thirty minutes, about the new firewall. And the lawyer called back about the house," he let out an audible gulp. "The buyer isn't backing down."

"Every time I get close, something fucking stops me." Oliver yelled out in frustration. "Something comes up, I lose a phone, or I miss the damn bus. What if it's not meant to be? I've lost my chance. Shit, I'm getting married. I should just take the damn call, go back to work and marry Yvonne in a few days. I'll be-can be happy."

Tommy and John shared a look, Oliver sounded as if he was going to his own execution.

"Yeah, buddy. That was really convincing." Tommy rolled his eyes.

"What the hell do I do?" Oliver pleaded to his friends.

"If this girl makes you act as crazy as that, we find her." John stood up and put a hand on Oliver's shoulder.

"But I can't lose that house. If I never find her, it was the last place we were together."

"Let me try and handle getting more info on the buyer. I'm charming and people like me, and seeing you like this, I'm sure you got all growly and angry on the phone." Tommy winked at Oliver.

"I'll start the internet search, and Oliver, you take that call. Since you know what your talking about most of the time." John sat down at Oliver's desk and pulled up his internet server on the computer.

"Sounds like we have a plan, gentleman. Oliver you might want to clean up a bit. You're looking a little ragged."

Oliver took a long jagged breath, dragged a hand through his hair and scratched his day-old scruff. He nodded and walked out of the office into his executive bathroom. John watched him. Almost three years and he is finally meeting the real Oliver Queen.

"I have _never_ seen him like that," John looked over at Tommy.

"It was worse when he first came back. He shut everyone out, dedicated his life to becoming a better man. He got an education, joined the company to continue his search for her. Every thing he has done was guided by his search for her. I thought that he had gotten past it."

"Wow. What do you think triggered it this time? The upcoming vows?"

Tommy shrugged, "he seemed fine two days ago. Almost excited. He was ready to move. After he started dating Yvonne, he put everything about Tahoe in a box. But now he seems frantic in his search this time. Almost as if he doesn't find her now, he never will."

"Maybe because if he doesn't find her, he'll marry Yvonne and she will be lost to him forever. Begs the question of why he's marrying Yvonne in the first place, doesn't it?"

"You know I was the one that encouraged him to take her on a date. But I never thought it would go as far as it has. I've been wondering why he agreed ever since I found out."

John typed out his search and had no idea who he was looking for. He started printing stories about young female CEOs. He needed more details.

"Tell me what else you know about this girl."

"I know Ollie has some pictures of her, but he won't share them. He's protective of her even now. According to him she's funny, a bit of a nerd and really sweet."

"We really need a picture. I have law enforcement contacts."

"I'll ask and if that doesn't work, I'll get into his place and see what I can find."

"You think he would give it to us if it meant finding her?"

"Honestly, I don't know. Nothing makes sense for Ollie and his Angel."

"I think that's maybe real love."

"Dig my man, I think it's true love."

"Then he's an idiot to even think of marrying Yvonne."

"Sure, I already said he was an asshat so adding idiot isn't too hard."

John nodded his head and got back to his search. He really wanted to meet the woman that made Oliver this crazy. John had once turned his back on love and he was still paying for that mistake to this day. Oliver was making a huge mistake, giving up and tying himself to someone he doesn't love.

 **July 2005**

"You can not hide from me, Flynn, I will find you."

Oliver watched her run around the basketball court and down the slope toward the lake in the opposite direction of where he was crouched behind a boulder. If he can get back to the garage, he can hide her surprise before she made her way back up to the main house.

He had snuck out of bed early in the morning, left her a note, fresh waffles in the microwave and brewed a pot of coffee. He had a plan and she couldn't be there to watch. The plan had come to him the night before, while they sat together on the chaise lounge on the balcony, watching the stars appear in the night sky.

They returned to the house after the hike and Oliver had made good on his promise of a bubble bath. He tried to tempt her into the main house and the master suite, but she said that his tub was perfect for two. Oliver couldn't remember the last time he had taken a bath and he was sure that it had not been with a beautiful woman between his legs.

The water had been extra warm and the bubbles smelled of milk and honey. Oliver sank low into the tub first and offered his hand to help her sit with him. Water lapped over the edge as she sat down, her deep sigh of contentment when she pressed up against his naked chest.

"Talk to me, tell me anything," Oliver asked her ear.

She told him her favorite movie, tv show, books, how she liked to sit in the park and read on Sundays. He learned her favorite color, green, and that she hated onions. Her mother had tried to get her to eat them when she was younger, told her they where white pickles, which she had loved, but as soon as she had taken a bite she'd spit them out and said well I don't like pickles anymore. She hadn't had one since. She told him that for years she dressed up as an astronaut, partly because she wanted to go to space, and also because her mother couldn't afford to buy her another costume. She avoided details, but he still felt like he knew her better than anyone.

Her finger skimmed the water, brushed over his arm. She laid her head back on his chest and looked up at him, offering her lips.

"Your turn."

He started to talk, his arms around her waist. He told her about getting left at the zoo by his father when he was a kid. It had been his babysitter who came and picked him up from security, and she had cried in Russian, promising him cookies.

"Sound's like you had a lot of cookies growing up," she teased.

"Jealous?"

"Nope just wondering when I get some cookies," she turned in his arms.

"I can get out and start a batch if you want."

She pursed her lips and then shook her head.

"Nope, I have you just where I wanted you," she licked her lips and leaned in and licked his chest. She tickled his sides and he yelped. He splashed her and tried to dodge her attack. She splashed him back and ran her fingers behind his knee. They laughed and sputtered until the bathroom had almost flooded. It took almost all the towels to clean up the mess. But Oliver couldn't stop the smile on his face that matched hers.

Together they made dinner, a simple spaghetti and salad. Oliver made a chocolate chip cookie dough while the sauced reduced. She kept trying to steal chips from the bag, without him seeing, but he would catch her and shove the chip in his own mouth. Oliver loved every moment, his chest ached from laughter and his heart soared.

After dinner, they took a bottle of wine and two glasses upstairs to the balcony. Oliver grabbed a light blanket and draped it over her legs. She laid back against him pulled his arm snug around her.

"Thank you for today, it's been amazing."

"I was going to say the same thing, Angel," Oliver whispered.

"Is that what you're sticking with? Angel?"

"I think it fits better than Flynn." Oliver smiled at her huff.

"I'm no Angel, Flynn," she sat up and looked at him. "I've done things I'm not proud of."

"I would never judge you for your past, if you won't condemn me for mine." Oliver was terrified that once she knew who he was, she wouldn't want to have anything to do with him.

"We have no past, we have now and the stars." She cupped his face, her thumb rubbing over his smooth cheek.

"You want the stars? I'll give you the stars."

"I don't need promises, I just need you."

Oliver pulled her close, his hands tangled in her hair, his lips brushed over her cheek.

"You might not be an Angel, but you are mine," Oliver felt her shiver in his arms.

"You are so cheesy," her voice breathless. She tugged his lip in between her teeth and sucked the plump lower lip until he groaned and shifted beneath her.

"Should we go inside?" Oliver asked against her lips.

She leaned back and looked around, the only light came from a single candle inside, the moon and the stars in the sky. She turned back to him and pulled her shirt, or his shirt since she had taken one of his, over her head. She stood up and pushed down her shorts and underwear. She placed her hands on her bare hips and smiled.

"I think right here is just fine. Unless you're cold."

Oliver stood up and quickly stripped down. He stepped toward her, his hands on her hips. His thumbs drew circles on her soft skin. Her hands went to his shoulders and pulled him closer. She was tiny, her head rested under his chin, his dick pressed against her stomach.

"Maybe you can warm me up." Oliver hummed.

She pushed up on her toes, her arms tighten around his shoulders. Her soft lips were warm, she brushed them gently and teased him with the tip of her tongue. His hands slid up her back, into her hair and he pressed her back against the iron rail. She jumped in his arm at the cold contact against her skin.

Oliver loved the way she responded to his touch, she made soft noises in the back of her throat that encouraged him to explore her body more. Kissing her and touching her only got better each time. He learned something new about her needs every time. He didn't think he could ever get enough of her, and he didn't want to.

Oliver skimmed a hand down her body, slipped his fingers between her legs. He found her wet heat, his fingers slid between her slit and he rubbed the bundle of nerve endings that caused her to open her legs wider and grip onto the rail. Oliver dragged his mouth down her neck, her back arched her chest heaved. He pushed a finger inside her, his thumb circled her clit and rubbed it back and forth. He inserted a second finger, pumped his hand faster. His swirled his tongue around a peaked nipple and sucked it into his mouth. He felt her stiffen and liquid heat flooded his hand. Oliver smirked against her skin and sucked harder. Her cries filled the quiet night. Her legs shook and her breathing was ragged. Her knuckles turned white around the rail.

Oliver drop to his knees, his fingers spread her ass apart and he licked her juices clean until she whimpered and shook. He was rock hard and satisfied, he would clean up, finish himself off quickly and fall asleep beside her. Or that's what he thought before she stood up, shoved him back and spun facing out toward the lake. She bent forward, looked over her shoulder at him.

"You didn't think we were done did you?"

Oliver licked his lips and moved toward the tight ass that was calling him.

"I am never going to be done with you."

"Show me," her voice quivered.

Oliver ran his hand over her back, he committed to memory the way her pale skin shined in the starlight. She didn't want promises, but Oliver was going to give her the stars, and he knew just how to do. He just needed time to make it.

She pushed her hips and wiggled against him and all thought left his mind. Only the need to touch her, to fill her up, and feel her warmth surround him. Oliver took hold of her hips, she pushed up on her toes and bent forward over the rail. He groaned as his dick slid between her wet core, with her everything was more intense. He tried to be gentle, to move slowly and let her get used to the position. He wiggled his hips pushed in deeper and she let out a hiss and a sigh. He pulled away slowly, his eyes closed at her tight grip on his dick. She surprised him by slamming her hips back into him, Oliver fingers pressed into her flesh, his legs shook with restraint.

"Don't hold back, I want you, I want this." Her breath hitched, her hips rolled.

"Fuck, Angel."

Oliver tightened his grip and he let go of his control. He surged his hips forward, thrust up into her heat. She pushed back, matched his fevered pace. She looked back at him, Oliver brushed hair from her face, he needed to see her eyes. She pushed up, twisting her shoulder to touch his chest. Oliver reached down and grabbed her left leg and lifted it up to spread her wide, his other hand on her hip. She wrapped an arm around his neck, holding on and gave him a chaste kiss. Oliver held most of her weight, he pistoned his hips and slammed into her. He watched her face as her eyes rolled back, she clenched tight on his dick.

Her leg shook against his arm. He knew she was close and he wouldn't last much longer. He dropped his hand between her legs and pressed down on her clit. She spasmed and shook, her loud moan echoed into the night. Oliver cried out, erupted and surrendered to her.

Oliver lowered her leg, wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his chest. He took a shaky step back, her legs wobbled, but he wouldn't let her go. He felt his dick soften but he stayed inside her warmth, unable to let go. His dick slipped out when he sat on the lounge chair, he pulled her with him and tucked her head under his chin. She didn't talk, but she reached for the blanket at their feet. Oliver took slow, deep breaths to calm his racing heart and brushed his hand through her hair. She sighed in contentment and snuggled in closer to his warmth.

He had never been in love before; he had said the words, but never meant them or understood what they meant. But now every part of him knew that he was more than halfway in love with this woman. His need to hold her and to never let go only grew with each passing moment. He thought of her walking through the flowers towards him and he had known then he was a goner. He slipped the rose securely in his bag as a symbol of hope for them.

She wasn't ready for him to say what was in his heart. He was terrified that once he did that she would leave. That he had broken her rule and would lose her forever. He had never feared breaking a few rules before, but with her he could lose everything. But he also couldn't let her go without having a way to find her again.

"Stay with me. I want this, but I want it every day of my life." Oliver whispered the words into her hair.

He held his breath for her answer, and his heart sank when she didn't respond. He leaned back to look at her face, her eyes were closed her mouth slightly open. She let out a little puff of air. She was asleep. Oliver smiled and brushed a kiss to her forehead.

"Tomorrow. I'll tell you tomorrow."

Oliver pulled her closer and let his exhaustion take over.

The sun greeted him in the morning, and she was still sound asleep in his arms. Oliver gently got up and carried her inside, laid her on the bed and covered her with a light blanket. He wrote her a quick note and got to work on his plan. He just hoped she slept long enough for him to finish.

He had made a quick breakfast for himself and looked at the clock, seven. Without Raisa he never got up before ten, but he was too excited and needed the space to do it. He made her breakfast in hopes that it would delay her.

Oliver walked to the garage and went through the side door. He would need to keep the main doors closed because the sound of the grinder might wake her. Oliver had spent a lot of time rebuilding parts for the Bronco, welding and grinding pieces together. He was good at it. Before he'd met Angel he had gone and purchased sheet metal to see about fixing the gas gauge. While he'd been there, he had seen a four by four 1.33mm thick sterling silver sheets and for some reason decided to add it to his purchase. He had no idea what he would do with it until last night.

He wanted to give her a star so she could find her way back to him. He knew it was cheesy but he didn't care, he wouldn't break his promise of giving her the stars.

He had grabbed his hat to keep his hair out if his eyes and got to work. He traced out the shape he wanted, cut the sheet in four pieces, saving them in case he made a mistake. A simple four pointed silver star no bigger than a nickel sat in the palm of his hand. He couldn't believe he was doing this - making a necklace for the girl he liked. Tommy would laugh at him and tell him to just go buy something shiny. Oliver didn't understand why he needed to do it, to give her something so cheap but from his heart.

What if she hated it? Laughed at his offer? The voice in his head sounded a lot like his father. But the simple soft voice added _I just need you._ Even in a whisper, she drowned out his doubt.

He made three more and looked at the four stars in front of him. They weren't perfect, but he picked up the closest one and puffed the edges and punched a hole in the top. He was almost done when the side door opened. He pushed the stars away, pocketed the one he had just finished and ducked down.

"I can see your feet silly. What are you doing?"

"Playing a game, catch me if you can!"

Her laughter chased him through the garage into the main house. He ran into the mud room and back outside. She called out for Flynn, but Oliver didn't stop. He couldn't let her see until it was finished. He had the advantage of already knowing the property and the years of hide and seek with Tommy and Thea. Angel rushed past him without even knowing. Oliver ran back into the guest house shoved the star in his wallet and ran back to find her.

He waited until she turned the corner of the main house to grab her. He lifted her up off her feet and spun her around. She squealed and laughed in his arms.

"Don't do that, you scared me. I'm going to need to put a bell on you."

She swatted at his arm and then kissed his cheek.

"I missed waking up with you. But I loved the waffles. And coffee. How's your baby? Did you get her fixed? Does she have a name? She should have a name. How about Robin? Since you're Flynn."

Oliver smiled and kissed her. "Good morning. No changes on the Bronco, still not reading right. She wasn't a she until now. And yes, you can name her whatever you like."

"Maybe I can take a look at Robin. If you're okay with it?" she asked nervously.

"Whatever you want, but I do need to head to town today. I can take a cab if you want to stay here and work on Robin. Do you need anything while I'm out?"

"No, I'm good. But there is something," she bit her lip and looked away. "Umm we didn't use a condom last night. While we were on the balcony."

"Shit, you're right. I'm sorry. Should I check for a morning after pill?"

"No, no I have a depo shot. I'm good. Our judgment was a little impaired, but I thought you should know that I'm okay with it. With what happened and if it happened again. I'm okay with it."

"So just to be clear, are you saying no more condoms?"

Oliver wanted to rush her into the house, throw her on the bed and slip inside her right now. He had been so far gone last night that he hadn't truly appreciated the feel of her bare heat. But now he could take his time, melt into her and never let go.

"Yes, no more condoms. So take that off your shopping list. But add chocolate syrup and caramel sauce. I want a sundae for dessert. And maybe burgers for dinner. I want to try Transformers again tonight."

Oliver hugged her to his chest, soaked in her bubbly personality and hummed along with whatever she said. He hesitated to let go, but wanted to hurry back.

"I won't be gone long. Don't let Robin be the boss."

She laughed and saluted him. "Don't worry sir, I'll have her purring like a kitten before you know it."

"She's supposed to roar like a lion."

"Fine, fine a manly kitten."

Twenty minutes later, his taxi arrived and he stuck his head under the bronco to tell her goodbye. She waved him off muttering to Robin about men. Oliver laughed.

"One hour, two at the most."

"I'm having girl talk now, get out of here."

"Movie?"

"The sooner you leave, the faster you get back."

"Fine, don't miss me too much?"

"I can't miss you if you don't leave."

"Missing you already," Oliver called over his shoulder.

"Sap!"

Oliver laughed as he walked away lighter than he had ever felt in his entire life. Later he would tell her everything, beg her to break the rules and tell him everything. But now he needed to get to a jeweler to finish her necklace.

 **June 2012**

For five years, Oliver had lived his life full of regret. He had kept his head above water, but the guilt dragged him down. Most days he was able to survive until the next, but it was getting harder to pretend that he was okay.

He knew that the engagement was a mistake. He knew that he gave away his heart a long time ago, and that no matter what he did no one could take her place. He had tried. He really wanted to try and make it work. But all it took was a box of pictures to send him off on another wild goose chase for another woman. He had never told Yvonne about his time in Tahoe or why the place meant so much to him. There was no way he could have hidden his broken heart.

Oliver looked at himself in the mirror and wondered what Angel would say to him. Probably to get his head out of his ass and tell Yvonne the truth. He should never have come to work today. His head wasn't in it and he sure as hell wasn't in the mood to have a conference call about business. His heart and his mind where in Tahoe and some new company from San Francisco wasn't going to distract him from his goal.

Diggle had given him a new idea to pursue and he thinks that it's the closest he has ever come to finding her. He just needed to finish this call and then start searching.

Oliver straightened his hair, unrolled his sleeves and put on his jacket and tie. He needed to be a Queen and get through the next hour, then he needed to call Yvonne and be honest with her about the kind of life he wanted to lead and who he had to be. He hated to hurt her, but he could no longer lie about what he wanted.

He stepped from the bathroom to find his two friends head down, looking through pages of printouts. They mumbled, too old, too young, not smart enough. Oliver had done one good thing in his life - he had the best of friends. Diggle lifted his head and looked at him.

"You know this would be a lot easier if you had a picture of this girl."

"I've been asking for years Dig. He's never shown me." Tommy added.

Oliver had never wanted to share her memory with anyone. He didn't even like to talk about it. But he knew they were right about that, that he had to show them who they were looking for. He took a deep sigh and walked to his desk. He opened the bottom drawer and pulled out the wooden box. He didn't know why he'd brought it with him today, but as he rushed from his house he had grabbed it without thought.

He opened the box and pulled out the picture of her laughing in his Bronco. They had run out of gas after she told him she fixed Robin. She had cursed Robin for lying to her and promised retribution. Oliver had started to laugh and soon she was joining him. He couldn't resist taking her picture. He loved her bright smile and the look in her eyes.

Tommy snatched the picture from Oliver's barely outstretched arm. Diggle crowded next to him.

"Wow," Diggle said

"Damn, Ollie. I figured she'd be hot, but damn."

"I can tell you everything that I do know about her, at least what will help. She had long blonde hair, she wore contacts or glasses depending on where she was going. She went to college back east, raised in a desert by a single mom. She can do almost anything with a computer. She is funny, sweet and brilliant."

"I have to ask," Digg looked at him. "If she's as smart as you say, why hasn't she come looking for you? You're Oliver Queen - people know who you are. Didn't you make a few eligible bachelor lists in the last five years?"

Oliver tried not to grab his friend and shake him, but it was hard. He fisted his hands and turned away. He didn't know the story.

"I was supposed to call her. She kissed me goodbye and said she left her contact information in my phone. I had no idea at the time that my phone was left in the restaurant where we had our last lunch. I went back and it was gone. I never found it. She probably thinks that I...," Oliver almost choked on the words. "That I didn't want her."

"Well that explains why you're always checking for your phone." Diggle shook his head.

"One lost phone cost me everything. I know it's a long shot. I know she has no reason to want to see me, but I've got to try."

"What about Yvonne and the wedding?" Tommy asked.

Oliver caressed the box before he opened it, he pulled out the other pictures.

"I'm going to call her after I get off the conference call. I know what I have to do."

The office door opened and his assistent stuck his head in.

"I have everything set up for you in the conference room. I set up the files you need as well."

"Thank you Roy, I'll be there in a minute."

"I still don't like that he is dating Thea," Tommy grumbled. "But it must be nice telling him what to do all the time."

"I pretend that I don't know what they are doing, it helps. Any luck on the buyer?"

"I have a lead, some upstart company from San Francisco. That's all I know right now but I only just started."

"Get me a name, an email or anything really. I won't lose that house."

"I'm on it, Buddy."

Oliver took the picture out of Tommy's hand and placed it in his inside coat pocket. His friends looked at him, gave him a quick smile and got back to work. He walked out of the office and sat at the conference table. A monitor was set up in front of him, Roy already made the connection and Oliver was looking into an empty chair. Behind the chair was a shelf of Autobot action figures still in their boxes. Oliver grimaced and turned his head away. Why did it have to be Transformers?

The chair moved and a hand came into view.

"I got this, Felicity. Don't worry. Oh.. Mr Queen!? I'm sorry to keep you waiting. My boss is dealing with a personal emergency and will not be able to join us, but I am more than happy to explain our product and our company."

"Call me Oliver. I have a few emergencies myself, so if we can speed this up, I'd appreciate it."

"Of course Mr Que-Oliver. Please call me Curtis."

A loud cry from another room interrupted Curtis.

"That's not going to happen!" a women cried out.

"I'm sorry, let me close the door."

Oliver shuffled his papers, and wondered what kind of day this Felicity was having if she was yelling. She sounded pissed.


	7. Chapter 6

**June 2012**

Felicity stared down at her phone, a mix of loss and sadness settled into her stomach. She had almost had it. She'd almost had the house, the one place where she had come alive. It had been an impulse to purchase the house, one she couldn't resist. Everything had been set in motion, she only needed a few signatures and it would have been hers.

She mostly avoided Tahoe in the summer months, too many memories. But every fall, before winter set in, she spent a week in Incline Village. The night before she would leave she'd sneak into the grounds and walk the property. She peeked in the windows, never once had she seen the houses lit or occupied. Over the years she'd wondered about the owners, she started looking after she made her first million.

Felicity had been surprised to find that the House and property was a part of the Queen family holdings. She began to save and plan, sending her lawyers to make the offer, using her company name as the buyer. She even considered using it for company retreats. Felicity planned to make the smaller house only available to her.

She wanted to see Lake Tahoe from the balcony in July again, feel the summer heat on her skin while she remembered the possibilities of another life. A time when her ideas for the future included a pair of sapphire blue eyes and a bright smile.

People don't normally fall in love after a week. They also don't give their heart fully to a stranger. But for Felicity there was no other choice. She found herself in him and it terrified her. Knowing he wasn't interested in keeping the heart she gave him, didn't stop her from giving it to him.

Buying the house was her way of holding on to that small piece of herself she had lost. She believed that owning the house was meant to be, where she was supposed to be. And now someone was taking it away from her. She had no legal way to keep the house and the illegal ones wouldn't accomplish more than yelling into the wind. Even if she begged for the house, offered more money, the lawyers told her there was nothing to be done. The owners refused to sell on any terms. The house was lost to her. It was Flynn all over again.

Felicity put down her phone, picked up the bag of donut holes, and sat at her kitchen table. She should check on Curtis and the video conference, or she could start a search on Flynn's license plate. Instead she sat there clutching her donut bag and contemplated her life.

She ignored the buzzing from her phone, the knocking from her door was a little harder to ignore. Felicity smoothed her hair down and checked the peephole, Dylan. She stepped back and took a deep breath, she was not prepared to talk to him yet. Could she pretend that she wasn't here? Send him a text saying she was sick with the plague? Maybe the flu?

"Felicity, open the door. Jimmy told me you haven't left for the day and Curtis was here. Please, I need to talk to you."

Felicity silently cursed her doorman. He was not getting a Hanukkah gift this year that's for sure. She looked down at herself, glad she had at least changed into a pair of jeans and put on a clean shirt. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

"Dylan?! Hi! What are you doing here? I thought we were going to talk later?" She put false cheer in her voice and hoped he didn't notice her strain.

"And I thought you had a meeting?" he snapped.

She huffed and avoided looking at him.

"Something came up and I let Curtis take care of the meeting. I didn't know my company was any concern of yours."

"Not your company, but you are a big concern of mine. I have called you ten times today, no idea how many text messages." He tossed his phone onto her table. "I called your office, that's how I found out you hadn't come in yet. You have never missed a day of work. So what happened that was so important that you missed work? Does it have to do with the missing ring box?"

Felicity was confused at first. He had never gotten mad at her before and she didn't understand why he was mad now. Wasn't he always asking her to take a day off? A ring flashed in her mind and her eyes widened. He must have realized the ring was gone and tried to talk to her about it, while she had been caught up in Flynn and the house.

"Ri-ring box?" she sputtered.

"My housekeeper found the ring while vacuuming, but no box. Which I see is there on the counter? So I assume that your panicked exit last night had something to do with the ring. I thought something was wrong, but I stupidly assumed you would at least have talked to me. Hell, if you'd bothered to take my calls or tried talk to me, I could have explained…"

"Dylan, I'm sorry I got scared. I needed to be alone to think and I couldn't do it with you watching me."

"What is there to think about?" He demanded. "I thought you wanted to be with me?"

"Everything, I have to think about everything. About what I want."

"This goes back to you not sleeping at my place when you're with me. I should have known that I would never be anything more than a hook up after that first night. Hell, you cried in your sleep and begged to be forgiven. Not to mention how you ran from my house and didn't return my calls for a week. I don't know why I even tried."

"I care about you, I really do."

"And I love you, but that's not enough, is it? I am not enough. Is there someone else?"

Felicity opened her mouth to answer, that there wasn't anyone else. But she couldn't say the words. She had pictures of Flynn, a way to find him, she couldn't lie to herself anymore. She needed to know why he never called. Why he never found her. She had tried to love Dylan, but it had never felt right.

"I'll take your silence as a yes."

"Not in the way you think. I have never cheated on you."

"Of course not because you have never really been with me." Disgust and sadness filled his words.

"That is not fair. I tried, I really tried to be with you, more than I ever had before. I gave my heart away a long time ago, and I never got it back. If I could be with someone else, it would be with you. When I saw that ring, I knew I had been lying to myself and I couldn't pretend anymore. I never wanted to hurt you."

"You want to know the saddest truth. That ring doesn't even belong to me. I'm hiding it for my friend Scott. He's going to ask his high school sweetheart to marry him. You've never had enough time to meet them, but they're perfect together. I knew you weren't ready, but I never knew that you had to force yourself to be with me."

Felicity covered her mouth, her eyes filled with tears. Dylan is a good man and he didn't deserve to be treated this way. She should never have let it continue for so long.

"Dylan, I..." She stepped forward, but he took a step back.

"I know you are sorry. I know you never meant to hurt me, but it doesn't feel like that to me. I have been a placeholder for this other guy, you had given your heart to. But what I want to know is where is he? Where is he now? He's not here. I am. I've been here the whole time, and you've never seen me."

"I don't have the right answer for you. But I **AM** sorry. I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about this sooner."

"Felicity, I don't know if you have ever really talked to me, besides tech talk. I have no idea how we've gotten this far off track. I think we need some time apart. Maybe you can figure out what I really mean to you. I love you, and I hope one day you will think I am enough."

Felicity cried harder. She had done this to him. She hurt him, and he still loved her. Why couldn't she love him back? She could be happy if she only let go of some never-forgotten dream. Since she had moved to San Francisco she had become a work obsessed machine, a robot with no emotions, and now she was malfunctioning. She tried to ignore her past, to bury it with code and long hours. She didn't need anyone else, she only had to get through the day. She felt her personal life crumble beneath her and no matter how hard she'd tried to hold on she'd just kept failing.

"Time apart is a good idea. We both need time to think. I am truly sorry I hurt you. You deserve so much better than me. If we get through this I will be one hundred percent invested in our relationship. No more confusion. Give me some time to figure this out."

Dylan stepped around the table, wrapped his arms around her and held on. He was warm and comforting. She wished that it was enough. But no matter how much she wished that it was, she knew something was missing. She pulled back and gave him a chaste kiss before turning away from him.

"I love you Felicity. I hope you know that."

"I do," she couldn't look at him anymore.

Dylan picked up his phone from the table, shoved it into his pocket. He grabbed the ring box and walked to the door, he turned once when he was at the door.

"Goodbye Felicity."

She took a deep breath and looked at him, "Goodbye Dylan, best of luck to your friends."

He gave her a sad nod and walked out the door. She was sure that she would never see him again. Felicity was more bothered by hurting him than ending their relationship. She didn't think anything would come of her search for Flynn, but she could no longer hide her indifference to the outside world. Being involved with anyone was a mistake.

Felicity sat at her table, pulled the laptop toward her and opened the pictures. She looked through the images, seeing her own smile. She forgot how happy she had been. If someone had asked her a day ago, if she was happy, she would have said yes. She wasn't unhappy. She was living each day to the best of her ability. What had happened to her?

 **July 2007**

After an hour alone with Robin, Felicity conceded her defeat. As far as she could tell the gas gauge was working in perfect order. She had done her best tinkering and was convinced Robin had it out for her. After her second knuckle scrape and a small splatter of oil in the face, Felicity was calling it quits. Robin was Flynn's baby, so maybe she was jealous of his distraction.

"Alright, alright, I will leave you alone. But I will tell your daddy about your behavior young lady. And I am scolding a car. You are losing it Smoak, you need to get a grip. Might help if you also stop talking to yourself."

Felicity looked at her watch, checked the time. Flynn had told her that he might be gone an hour or two, so he could be back any moment. After a quick clean up and change she decided to do a little exploring. She had chased after Flynn through the main house but hadn't really paid attention to her surroundings.

For the hundredth time she wondered why Flynn was here. He'd been wrapped up in her and following her rules, so she had no idea who the property belonged to. Flynn could be watching over the house for the summer. Maybe he was the handyman, not that she had seen him do anything handy, but it made sense with him living in the guesthouse. She wondered if she asked, would he tell her. She knew at first he was willing to tell her whatever she wanted, but since then he seemed to enjoy their arrangement. Even if he wanted obscure details about her, would he share his important details?

"Ugh! They were your rules, so why are you having such a hard time following them?!" Felicity groaned.

The main house was gorgeous; polished wood and stone with state of the art appliances. The cupboards and fridge were bare. Everything was spotless, and smelled of pine cleaner. She wondered if that had been Flynn. The media/entertainment room had the night sky painted on the ceiling, large reclining leather couches and a system that could get anything you wanted on the large sixty inch flat screen. Felicity could live in this room alone, she could do without the red walls and carpet, maybe add a popcorn maker, but she would lose days on tv binge watching. The master bathroom was her second favorite place, a Jacuzzi bath with a large picture window overlooking the lake.

She avoided touching anything and only looked. She considered the indoor lap pool for a moment before moving on to sit outside near the man made waterfall and pond. She wondered what the house was like when it was full. Would the rooms echo with laughter or muffle the sound? She had never thought of having children, it was a foreign concept that happened to other women. But her mind conjured up dark blonde babies with blue eyes and dimples. Her mind drifted, she let the sound of the lapping water lull her to to sleep. Her dreams of laughter and children filled the empty house.

Warm hands and soft lips pulled her from her dreams. Flynn blocked out the sun, so she was able to look up into his smiling face.

"Hello, Sleeping Beauty," he smirked at her rolled eyes.

"You are such a sap."

"Only for you. How's my girl?"

He pulled a chair next to her and sat down taking her hand. He turned to look at her waiting for her answer.

"Robin is stubborn, that's for sure. She spit at me and bloodied my knuckles."

He tugged on her hand a ran his thumb over her knuckles, he lifted it to his mouth and gently kissed her abused flesh. Felicity watched in awe of the sexy man that treated her booboos with such care. She wondered what kind of father he would make, a good one she decided that would never leave his family. She shook her head and tried to derail her train of thought before she said something she regretted. She was way to young to even be thinking about that anyway. But the words _never leave me_ flashed through her mind.

"I'm sorry Robin hurt you, I will have a word with her. But I was wondering about you, not my car."

"Oh, am I _**your**_ girl?"

His hand cupped her cheek, she leaned into his touch. She closed her eyes and soaked up his attention and warmth.

"You'll always be _**My**_ girl, Angel."

Felicity need to break the tension before she blurtted out her name and social security number. She turned her head kissed his palm and sat back, she looked to the lake, instead of the deep blue of his eyes.

"What are we going to do for the rest of the day? Movie?"

"While I was in town I already got tickets for tonight's showing. You said you wanted to try again? I picked them up just in case."

She turned to him and gave him a bright smile. "Very smart thinking. What time?"

"Eight ten showing. We still have time to waste. How about a drive with Robin? See if we can get you two to get along."

Flynn reached out and tugged on a strand of her hair. She swatted his hand away, and captured his fingers, holding onto him. They sat down, only the water and bird breaking the comfortable silence.

She was rarely quiet. Being an only child with a single working mom, meant that she was used to being alone and filling the silence with her rambling. Felicity always had a hard time sitting still, but here with him she felt at ease. There was nowhere else she wanted to be at the moment, if ever.

"I'm going to miss this." Felicity hadn't meant to say it out loud, but she couldn't hold it in. "I can't believe this is my last night here."

He sat forward his hand jerked from her grasp.

"What!? Tonight!? You're leaving!?" He snapped out.

"Didn't I tell you my bus ticket out of here is tomorrow morning?"

"No, I think I would have remembered that."

"It was only a few days away and then I head..." She paused, thinking the word home felt wrong.

She never really had a home, her mom had to move around to different apartments depending on rent and work. Her time in Boston had been the closest she had come to a home and that had ended in disaster. A stalker, a boyfriend that used her code to break the law, leading to his arrest and eventual suicide. She had loved the East Coast but too many memories of fear, loneliness and heartbreak demanded she try something new.

"Where will you go? Finish school? You said you studied back East?"

Felicity stared at him. Did he know she was thinking of the East Coast. How did he do that?

"I will never go back East." She shuddered. "I'm done with school, I have a job lined up in a new city."

"What city? Maybe I can help?"

She sighed and turned away from him. How long would he stay around, once he knew who she really was? She wasn't exciting, a risk taker, an adventurer. She was a boring workaholic, whose favorite thing to do was geek out on tv and new tech. She wore soft tone colors, glasses and a ponytail. She didn't understand what he saw in her. Even if he grew up here in Incline Village, he still had his pick of women. She could see him on the arm of some long legged model, snowbunny. Rich lonely women buying him clothes, dressing him up into their play thing.

She realized two things, one she watched too many movies and two she had no idea what she wanted from him. Was this just a summer fling? Would she live the quiet life, here in Tahoe? She was surprised when she could picture it. Maybe he saw it too.

"Do you really have to leave tomorrow? Could I talk you into staying a few more days?"

He got out of his seat and squatted in front of her, his hands on her knees. She wanted to stay, maybe she could contact Queen Consolidated and tell them she was delayed. Her plan was to get to Starling City and find a hotel for a few weeks while she went through company orientation. On the weekends, she would look for an apartment. She didn't plan on meeting anyone, much less someone she wanted to be involved with. Felicity hadn't thought of a relationship since Cooper, she didn't think she had what it took to keep someone interested.

What if she left tomorrow and never saw him again? Were four nights enough?

"We won't have to break any of your rules. No personal details, just sex and fun. That's what you want right?" he asked.

Felicity swallowed a ball of acid down her throat and wondered if that was hope in his voice she heard. But was it hope that she would say no, that she wanted more, or hope she wouldn't break the rules. She tried to read his face, but he was guarded. His hair covered his eyes, his chin down.

"I've got to admit the time not knowing you has been the best time of my life. I am so glad I didn't get to know you." Felicity said with a chuckle.

"Well, I'm glad you're glad. There is no one I'd rather not know than you," he snarked.

He stood up and offered her his hand, she didn't hesitate to take it. She knew once her hand was in his that she wouldn't make her bus in the morning. As long as she left the next day, she wouldn't miss orientation, and her job was secure. But until then she would enjoy every moment getting to not know someone.

 **June 2012**

Felicity heard Curtis come out of her home office but she didn't bother to turn. She was still caught up in the images on her computer and her sadness at hurting Dylan.

"I think I nailed it. He liked everything I had to say and said he would be overnighting the contracts. These were the easiest millions I have ever made. The guy barely even asked questions. He wanted out of there faster than you on a blind date. Earth to Felicity, you are needed back in the solar system."

She snapped her head up, "what the hell am I doing? I think I just broke up with Dylan. And, and I'm more upset about the look in his eyes than ever seeing him again. He's a great guy. Sweet, smart, techy, nerd and everything I should want. Why don't I want it?" Felicity sobbed.

Curtis pulled her up into his arms, her hands trapped between them. He cooed and rubbed circles on her back.

"Hey, hey Felicity, it's going to be okay. Dylan is going to be okay. You are going to be okay. If you're not ready to be involved with someone then that is okay. I am not going anywhere. You are stuck with Paul and I until the end of time. For every break up, make up or return of lost loves. You're my best friend and you are not alone."

Felicity cried harder, wrapped her arms around him and let her hurt and pain out. She had felt abandoned her whole life and now she knew what family truly felt like. She knew what home felt like. Felicity healed a little bit more, with each tear drop that fell.

"What did your lawyer say? Do you have a case to keep the house?"

Felicity couldn't answer, so she only shook her head.

"What about blackmailing the owner? I'm sure we can find some dirt. You know you can find anything on the internet."

Felicity smiled into his damp shirt. She pictured herself slapping e-mails and pictures on some large wooden desk, demanding her house or else. It wouldn't be legal but it'd be fun. She laughed for the first time today.

"Thank you, what would I do without you."

"You will never have to find out."

Curtis kissed the top of her hair and let her go.

"What are you going to do about Dylan?"

Felicity sighed, "Nothing, I don't love him and it's not fair to make him wait for something that will never happen."

"So back to my other question, what about Flynn?"

"I-I honestly don't know. Is it really worth finding him after so many years?"

" **Yes!"** Curtis shouted.

"No need to shout, geez I'm right here."

"I just wasn't sure if you could hear me over all that self doubt."

"Hardy har har, you are not as funny as you think you are. Thank you very much."

"Wrong, I am very funny, and no one says hardy har har anymore, grandma. It's all LOL and LMAO."

"I am hip enough to know what STFU stands for."

Curtis laughed, "That's my girl. Now, let's find your guy. What do we know?"

"He'd be about twenty-seven maybe twenty-eight. He is six one, blue eyes, dark blonde hair. Five years ago his hair was longer, but he might have cut it. He had broad shoulders, six pack abs, and wicked smile with dimples. His family wants him in the family business but he prefers cars. He'd been to school but had problems, family pressure and a rebel streak. He had a sister and a best friend he truly counted on. He broke his nose falling from a tree."

Felicity silently cursed at herself. She remembered everything he had told her but she couldn't tell someone if her boyfriend had any siblings. She really was a bitch. She gave into her loneliness and liked the attention but she never wanted him to be a distraction. Dylan was safe. He would never hurt her when it was time he left. She didn't care enough for it to hurt. Oh god what had she done? Who does that? She'd used him. Felicity didn't deserve a happy ending.

"Felicity, hey, come back to me. We got this, alright."

Her throat was too tight to answer, all she could do was nod. Curtis pushed her laptop to her.

"You have the power of Greyskull at your fingertips. Are you going to take it? Take charge. Be the hacker goddess I know lives within your Wifi. Go forth and find him. You can do it, if you search it, he will come."

"Oh my google will you stop with the movie motivational quotes. You're saying them all wrong anyway."

"Says the chicken with no gizzards."

"Seriously!"

Felicity started typing. She ignored the chanting of her friend behind her, or tried to.

"You got this. We got this, no problem. Nothing's going to stop you now."

She hit the DMV first, the plates had been from California. She knew the make of the car but was stumped on whether it was a '68 or '69 Bronco. It didn't take her long to find a match with the license plate. The Bronco was registered to Oliver Dearden. No traffic violations in five years. Now registered in Nevada.

"Oliver Dearden?"

She said the name slowly, caressing each syllable. Curtis made a choking noise behind her, he coughed.

"Hey!? Are you okay?"

"Did you say Dearden?"

"Yes, that's who the car's registered too."

"Honey I love you. You are brilliant and beautiful. **But** you are not very bright. When was the last time you opened a magazine? Watched something other than sci fi or fantasy TV? _DEARDEN is Moira Queen's maiden name!"_

Felicity shook her head a few times covered her ears and shook her head harder. It can't be, there is no way. He would have said something. Wouldn't he have?

"Wh-what do-does Oliver Queen lo-look like?" she squeaked.

Curtis opened up her search engine and typed in a name Oliver Queen. Images popped up, he seemed to never look into a camera, always on the move. His hair was cut short, he wore dark sunglasses in most of the profile pictures she found.

"What the hell? Does he ever look up?" She spat.

Picture after picture of "maybes", "it could be's", or "nah there is no way." She clicked faster and faster through the images. The last five years of her life flashed by like a film. She was supposed to work at Queen Consolidated. She was a day late to the conference where Oliver and Curtis met. She had emailed him. She'd set up a meeting that she'd missed. It couldn't be him, could it?

"The house is a Queen family holding," she mumbled out loud. She stopped on a picture, Oliver stared directly into the camera, glasses off. Piercing blue eyes stared, he wasn't smiling and he had a sexy scruff on his chin. She saw the mole beside his lower lip and her hands shook.

Five years and she kept missing him. He had been a step away all along.

"I had sex with Oliver Queen. A lot of sex, all over the place. Oh god, I can't go tell him now!" she wailed.

"What?! Why?"

"He could have found me at any time, he's Oliver _Fucking_ Queen. He can have whoever he wants. Why would he want me? I'm just a IT girl with glasses."

"You will not talk about my friend that way. If he walked away from you, it was his loss, but you need to confront him. Because you will never be clear of him if you don't. You have to. Do it for me."

Felicity spun in her chair, "For you!? This is my life."

"Yes it is. So why don't you start living it. Go tell him your name, and tell him he's a fool for never calling. Start looking for the silver lining."

She hit a link and bile rose from her stomach.

 _ **Oliver Queen and Yvonne Lawson: A Storybook Wedding**_

The story covered the known details of their upcoming union. He was getting married. Felicity checked the date, tomorrow evening, in Starling City, eight hours away. Oh god, she was running out of time.

"Curtis, I have to go to Starling City. Get me the first ticket. Hell, I'll use a private plane, but get me in the air in an hour. I'm going to pack."

"Oh shit, you're really going? Can I come? I have got to see his face when he sees you."

"Make the flight plan, get whatever seat count we need."

Felicity ran into her room, grabbed her overnight bag, and started to pack some clothes. She had no idea what she was shoving into the bag. It didn't matter, all that mattered was getting to Oliver before that wedding.

"Oliver Queen, don't you dare do something stupid."


	8. Chapter 7:

June 2012

Oliver sat in front of a blank screen, he was glad that he had done his research and traded numerous emails with the CEO of Smoak Systems, because he had no idea what happened during the video conference. It was an hour of his life he could never get back. He should have been looking through magazines, or searching the web. Instead, Oliver was trapped behind a desk, agreeing to every idea and contingency Curtis Holt could come up with. Oliver knew the company was worth the risk, he just hoped that it didn't cost him the only thing he couldn't lose, his Angel.

Oliver felt his phone buzz in his pocket, he pulled it out to see a message from Yvonne.

 **Yvonne: Meet me at your old place for lunch. So we can finish packing.**

 **Oliver: Be there in 30.**

 **Yvonne: Bring food, your fridge is empty.**

 **Oliver: K, Big Belly?**

 **Yvonne: NO! Have you seen my dress? Oh wait, you haven't, but soon ;) Salad from Danicas dressing on the side. ILY.**

 **Oliver: K 45m**

Oliver sighed, pocketed his phone and got up from the table. He had no choice, he had to tell Yvonne everything. He spent years lying to himself and to her, but he could no longer condemn her to a life without love. No matter how he said it, she would be hurt. And he could no longer use that as an excuse. He couldn't go through with the wedding when he loved someone else.

He never could tell Yvonne about the moment his life changed, the reason why he went from publicity-nightmare playboy to recluse businessman. Most people thought that it had something to do with the last school he'd been kicked out of, and he chose to let people think what they wanted. No one could comprehend that Ollie Queen fell in love with a stranger, and chose to dedicate his life to finding her. How do you tell that story to a woman on the first date? How do you tell someone that they will always come in second? The answer Oliver held onto was: you don't. You keep on living each day until it hurts a little less.

He thought it had worked, that he was free of the burden of loving a woman he would never know. But here he was, a day from getting married, closer than he had ever been before to finding her. And he would walk away from everything for one chance to see her again. To hear her talk, to hear his name, to give him one date.

That was the reason he could never marry Yvonne or anyone else. Because Angel was his always and as long as the door was open even a sliver, he would never be done with her. No matter what they had been through or what came after, he loved who he was when he was with her. Everything made sense when she was near.

Before leaving, he checked in with Tommy and Diggle. Tommy had the the best news, the house would not be sold and his father's lawyers were sending paperwork to get the property changed to his name. Oliver's relief was short-lived with Diggle's disappointing news that he had no news whatsoever. He had a few potentials with no photos or biographies that Dig was trying to track down. Oliver contemplated staying to aid in the search, but Tommy reminded him the importance of meeting with Yvonne and Oliver begrudgingly left.

His promised forty-five minutes turned into over an hour late. Oliver had arrived in time but chose to walk through the park near his house. He searched his mind for the right words. He cared about Yvonne, her friendship was important to him. He didn't want to hurt her, but how much more pain would he cause if he stayed, knowing he could never love her?

Oliver unlocked his door and stepped inside, the walls were bare and only a few boxes were left scattered throughout the house. The bigger furniture had already been placed in storage. He had a folding table and chair set up in his dining room. Oliver was going to need to find a new place. His lease was up at the end of the month, the landlord already had a new tenant moving in July. If the new search couldn't find Angel, Oliver would spend the rest of the summer in Tahoe.

"Oliver?" Yvonne's voice called out from down the hall.

"Yeah it's me. Sorry Yv, I got caught up."

"Do you ever go through your pockets? Damn Oliver, I think I found thirty bucks in your toss pile of clothes. We are going to need more boxes. Do you really need this many grey hoodies? Have you figured out what you are going to do with your bedroom furniture?"

"I'm keeping it."

"Do we want it in the downstairs guestroom? Or storage?"

Oliver walked down the hall toward her voice. He found her in his room, sorting through clothes. Her hair was pinned up in a bun. She wore frayed jean shorts and a tank top. Yvonne took the week off of work for wedding preparations and to help him move. Oliver was only supposed to be involved in helping run interference with his mom. He had barely talked to Yvonne since opening the box of memories, he'd been too consumed with longing for another woman.

"We need to talk," Oliver said.

"We are talking, you're just not listening. Hey, how'd the meeting go? Did you talk them down in price? Are they coming out here to do a system overhaul? Maybe you can poach their top tech? I know you are always looking for the best."

Oliver let out a long sigh, "The meeting was great. I agreed to their terms. Curtis was knowledgeable and convincing. Once the paperwork is drawn up, Smoak Systems will have complete control of our security systems and firewalls. The CEO was unavailable, but Curtis said she would come out to oversee the installation and programing in a few weeks."

"Are you sure you're making the right call? I find it strange the CEO couldn't make time to talk to you when you're in the office the day before our wedding."

"Yes, it's the right call, I trust this company. Their reputation speaks for itself, and I might add I have corresponded with the CEO through emails."

"Speaking of the wedding, your mother called to add two more guests to the list. Some business partner from China. I told her we are already at maximum capacity for the venue. But she told me if we were to move to the Manor, we can have an additional sixty people. Sixty people!? We barely know the one-fifty we have invited."

"I will talk to her."

Oliver rubbed his forehead, his head pounded, his chest was tight, the room started to spin around him. He can't go through with the wedding, even thinking about it made him dizzy. He put the palm of his hands down on the dresser his back was to Yvonne.

"Yvonne, I can't do this." Oliver whispered.

The words slipped through his lips on a gasping breath. Yvonne talked over him without hearing him. She folded and stacked the clothes while she talked about the flowers being the wrong shade of pink. The cake was strawberry cream instead of raspberry. And how her veil was lost in all the packing boxes.

"Yvonne, I can't marry you," he said it louder. His conviction growing with each word. His hand clenched tight around green threads. Still she talked.

The planner wanted double for dealing with Moira Queen. Yvonne's parents hadn't returned an RSVP or her phone calls. She was both relieved and disappointed. Thea was a lifesaver running interferences, doing Oliver's job, Yvonne joked.

"Yvonne!"

"What!?"

She turned and looked at him, her eyes wide. A grey hoodie in her hands.

"The wedding, I can't do it. I can't marry you."

"What? The wedding is tomorrow, Oliver. It's just cold feet, I'll get you some socks. It happens to everyone. After tomorrow everything will go back to normal."

"No, it's more than that. I cannot go through with the wedding. I care about you, but I am not in love with you. I'm sorry, I just can't."

"Why are you doing this now?"

Oliver grabbed Yvonne's hand and sat with her on the bed.

"I want to tell you a story. Almost five years ago a stupid kid met an Angel and she changed his life."

 **July 2007**

After she told him about her bus ticket, Oliver knew he was living on borrowed time. He needed to convince her to stay, to trust him with the truth of her identity. If he wasn't able to break through her barriers, he was going to fill the days they were together with happy stories.

They missed their second showing of Transformers when a drive into the hills left them stranded with no gas. He thought she would be angry, but instead he found her laughing. He captured the sight with a picture. Oliver had packed away sandwiches and water. Together in the back of the Bronco they ate and waited for a tow truck to bring them gas. When the truck arrived, she ran off to relieve herself behind a tree. She missed the other man using his name and the large tip Oliver signed for.

She asked to watch the sunset and they drove higher until she pronounced the spot perfect. She ran ahead of him up the slope of a small hill overlooking the lake. She turned to him laughing and telling him to hurry or he'd miss it. He vowed to himself he wouldn't miss a moment with her. The sun glowed behind her, silhouetting her body in light. She was stunning, her smile outshone the setting sun. Oliver joined her on the top of the hill, took her in his arms and kissed her. She melted into his embrace and told him to take her home.

The drive home had been sweet torture. She had taken his hand and pressed it onto her bare thigh, Oliver's fingers skimmed and flexed, she scolded him and told him to pay attention to the road. After a few moments she moved his palm high up her thigh. Oliver bit his lip, tightened his hold on the wheel, he fought the urge to look at where she moved his hand. From the corner of his eye he watched her head fall back, she scooted forward forcing his hand higher up her leg. Oliver felt warm wet cotton brush his pinky, he pressed into the cotton, rubbed his finger up and down slowly. She let out a sigh.

Oliver had her squirming in her seat by the time they pulled through the gate of the house. His jeans were too tight. He stopped in front of the house, unwilling to waste time parking the Bronco in the garage. She rushed out of the car pulled her sweater over her head and threw it at him. She ran into the house, Oliver chased after her, kicking off his shoes as he went. He followed the trail of clothing up the stairs, finding her naked on the bed and reaching for him. Oliver pushed down his pants and crawled on top of her. He took his time pressing into her warmth, savoring the feel of her.

The next morning, Oliver woke with her snuggled beside him, her head on his chest. She was tiny, yet somehow taking up most of the bed. Her leg was draped over his thigh and her hand was fisted on his stomach. When Oliver moved away, she grumbled something about not stealing her pillow man. She was naked and wrapped in his sheets and he needed to remember this moment. He made sure everything important was covered, including her face so she couldn't protest before taking her picture.

He woke her up by skimming his hand up her leg, over her hip. His lips followed his hand. She rolled onto her back her eyes closed, legs open. Oliver ran kisses down her inner thigh, his hands slid under her ass lifting her hips up. He inhaled her sweet scent. He swirled his tongue on her inner thigh moving closer, she shifted closer and made soft whimpering sounds of need. Oliver used his tongue, wrapped his arms around her hips and spread her open. Licking her juices slowly, nibbling on the sensitive flesh. She moaned, begged for more, called him unfair, and said he was the best alarm clock. He pressed his tongue inside her, while his thumb pressed down on her clit. Her hips rocketed up in his face, flooding his mouth with her excitement.

Her hands fisted in his hair, and tugged him up her body. She pushed him flat on his back straddled his lap and sank down on his hard dick. Oliver sucked in a hiss. Her nails dug into the flesh on his shoulder. He was mesmerized by the sight of her above him, her hair down, a golden temptress with a wicked smile. He was at her mercy. Her willing captive.

They showered together, spending as much time together as they could. They had sex on, against, under, and above every surface of the house and a few outside the house. They explored Tahoe, taking hikes, going for long drives. They talked about everything they could without details. She talked to him about school and asked why he had a hard time. She showed him tricks for studying, talked about her favorite classes, her life as a too-young-to-drink college student. She told him about her first time, in a computer lab late at night.

Oliver stopped trying to get her real name and just listened to her talk. He found himself talking about his isolation and self-destructive behavior. She told him that to be better than what was expected, he needed to stop caring about what others wanted for his life and to go after what he really wanted. When Oliver told her he didn't know what he wanted, she had laughed and told him that one day he would and she knew he'd be amazing.

After a few days she told him she needed to make a few phone calls. He left her alone in the house, with her laptop and her phone. When he came back she had tears in her eyes and a determined set to her shoulders. She refused to tell him what happened, but he knew something had changed. She was quiet and withdrawn. Oliver didn't push, he only opened his arms and waited until she fell against him.

He let her cry, and when she finished he led her to the couch. He turned on Spaceballs and talked to her about cooking with Raisa and Thea. He made chocolate chip cookies, gave her the biggest one while the others cooled. Oliver made a simple dinner of pasta and salad and for dessert he gave her a mint chip ice cream sandwich. She kissed him and told him that he'd made everything worth it.

The next day he took her to a carnival. Oliver kissed her on top of the ferris wheel. He'd spent close to thirty dollars before he won her a green teddy bear. She cheered and snuggled the bear, gave it a name, Flynn Jr.

Oliver tugged her into a photo booth, she smiled at the camera while Oliver only had eyes for her. Between pictures he pulled out the star necklace he'd been carrying for days, and held it in front of her face. The pictures captured her surprise, her joy, and her enthusiastic gratitude. She insisted on a second set of photos so she could have her own. Her strip of photos showed wide grins, silly faces, laughing and two people in a heated eye lock.

They left soon after and barely made it inside the door before he took her against the wall. He carried her up the stairs and stripped them both naked. Oliver curled up behind her and fell asleep.

The next day she was quiet. She refused to go anywhere, told him she just wanted to stay in bed. She stayed close to his side throughout the day, constantly touching him or holding his hand. She kissed him often and brushed her hand over his smooth cheek. Oliver realized halfway through the day, she was preparing herself to leave him. He couldn't fight their fate anymore and he waited for her to say goodbye.

She didn't touch her food at dinner, instead she held his hand. He tried to memorize the touch of her skin the warmth of her body next to him. A single tear slid down her cheek and Oliver caught it with a kiss. She pressed her face against his neck and inhaled.

"In another life, I could stay here forever. Forget the world outside exists and just cease being who I am. You'd be surprised how much I want to do that. But that's not who I am. I can't walk away from my responsibilities and I can't neglect my life anymore."

Oliver hated the sadness in her voice. He wanted her to be happy, he wanted to make her happy. But he couldn't force her to stay when she so obviously wanted to go. He didn't know how to ask her to give it all up, when he had nothing more to offer her. He didn't think that he was worth her throwing away her dreams. Maybe one day he would be worthy of her.

"You gave me a star and made this vacation the best thing to ever happen to me. This is nothing special, but I wanted to make you something since you made me something. You don't have to wear it. It's really dumb actually. Maybe I shouldn't even give it to you. You know what, never mind, I'll go get something else."

She stood up suddenly and tried to walk from the table. Oliver hand clamped around her wrist and he looked up into her face. Nervous energy came off her in waves, her lip was trapped between her teeth.

"Angel, whatever it is I want it. If it's from you, then I want it."

"Whatever!?" she chuckled. "What if it's an STD, huh? Okay, that joke was horrible. I don't have an STD or anything. Which you know 'cause I told you. And I should really stop talking before this gets any worse. So here!"

She pulled out a wooden box from her bag and placed it on the table. Oliver's eyes were wide in wonder. The smooth wood and tile picture of the lake, the box was amazing. He turned to look at her seated next to him.

"Wow, you made this! When'd you have the time? It's amazing."

"Oh! No I didn't. Not the box, no I bought the box." She leaned in and opened the lid. "The bracelet, I made that or tried to make that. It's been forever since I made anything with my hands. Wow, I should have stuck with the box, now the bracelet is a let down. I can write you code to get you back in school instead. That is more my specialty. Though that is illegal, so maybe not the best gift. Unless you want something illegal."

Oliver pulled out the green and black braided bracelet. He remembered them from middle school. Even had a few given to him by other girls. But this one was a simple design and made in the same amount of passion and care that he put into her star. He held it up to her, his palm up.

"Will you put it on me?" Oliver asked.

"Really!? You don't have to wear it."

"I want to."

She nodded once and stepped up to him, taking the bracelet from his hand. She tied it and leaned down to kiss his wrist. She looked up in relief.

"How will I say goodbye to you?"

"You could say, see you later?" Oliver shrugged.

"You know what I mean," she sighed.

"I do and I have no idea. I don't want to say goodbye to you, either."

"Flynn, I.." she hesitated.

"No, I don't want to hear that name tonight. You brought out a part of me that I have never seen. You have made me happier then I have ever know. You have saved me, my _Angel._ I won't break your rules, but I will only ask you to call me O. I won't say why or how it fits into my name but tonight I need to hear it. I don't want any lies between us tonight."

She nodded, "No lies between us, O. Then I need to tell you that I wish that I could change my mind about staying here, but I know that I can't. Just like I know leaving you is going to destroy me. I don't regret a single moment, and you shouldn't either. Knowing you has changed my life. You've opened up my heart in a way I didn't even know was possible. I don't need to hear it back, but I do need to tell you, I love you O."

It was only a letter, a simple vowel, the first letter of his name but from her lips it made him sigh. He had almost missed her confession, he'd been stuck on her almost saying his name. Hearing her say she loved him, this version of him that she had unlocked. She opened him up to possibilities he never knew he wanted and she loved him.

Oliver reached up, pulled off her glasses and placed them on the table. She leaned into his kiss, her hand on the side of his face. Her legs straddled his and she rolled against him. She stood up, her lips sliding over his, she pushed her long hair behind her ears, leaned back and took off her shirt. Oliver sat and watched her in awed wonder, he couldn't look away while he pulled his shirt off. Oliver stood up, his arms wrapped around her slim body. Her open mouth kisses and exploring tongue sent shivers down his back.

Every kiss felt like the first time. Her tongue swept over his lips, he opened his mouth and explored the sensation of being loved by this woman. If he only had one night to love her, then he would make it count. Make every one of her sighs and moans his lullaby.

He lifted her up, her legs wrapped around his waist, his hand cupped her ass. He never broke the kiss. Her hands were in his hair, holding him close. He carried her up the stairs and into the bedroom. Oliver sat down on the bed and laid back. Her hand dragged down his chest, her knees open beside his hips. She reached behind her and unsnapped her bra and tossed it away. Oliver sat up and pulled her bare chest against his and kissed her. His arm tightened around her waist and he lifted her until she was beneath him.

Oliver dragged his lips along the curve of her neck, his teeth gently tugged on her ear. Her head fell back and she gasped. Oliver's hands slid down her body, his thumb brushed over her hard nipple. She pushed into his hand, her hands kneading his shoulders tugging him closer. He reached between them and unbuttoned her pants, together they pushed the pants away and then she pulled off his.

He had never made love with women in the past, it was always fucking or sex. But with his Angel, everything felt new. His arms trembled, his heart pounded in his chest, his skin was covered in goosebumps. She was living color in his grey world. He used his hands, painted her with his admiration. He used his lips to to write poetry on her body. Oliver used touch to tell her that he loved her, he didn't need words, he showed her. He opened his heart and gave it to her completely.

She looked into his eyes, their fingers laced when he slowly moved inside her. Oliver watched her soft smile with her lovely face turned up to meet him. They moved together. Slow, easy strokes they built from embers to a raging fire of passion. Oliver tightened his grip on her hands, he couldn't let her go. She was his perfect match, and when they were joined everything felt right and whole.

She whispered O into his skin, she said it over and over. She called to him, and he came. Together they sank into oblivion, lost to everything but each other.

The sun woke him the next day, bright light shining into his eyes. He groaned and rolled away his hand reaching for her. He would tell her that he loved her, tell her his name, tell he he'd follow her anywhere. She was his always and he needed to make her understand. His hand found cold sheets and an empty bed.

Oliver sprung to his feet, searched the room, her bag and clothes were gone. Dread washed over him, pressure roared in his ears. He needed to find her. He dressed quickly, checked the time and pulled up the bus schedule. The first bus left at noon and it was just past ten. She must have dressed and packed in the dark. Was he really so horrible that she couldn't say goodbye?

His fingers drummed on the steering wheel, his knee bounced. He needed to hurry and he met every traffic light. The bus stop was near a cafe, he knew she'd stop and wait inside, order a cup of coffee to help wake her up. He knew how she liked it, and had greeted her each morning with a cup. Would the cafe add the right amount of cinnamon the way she liked? He need to calm down, he didn't want to scare her. No, he wanted to beg her to stay or take him with her.

He found her in the back corner of the cafe. Her hair was up, her face clear of makeup and pale. Her eyes were puffy. She saw him and her lip trembled. She shook her head and tears started to fall. Oliver's heart broke with hers, he moved closer, needing to ease their pain. She pushed to her feet and met him halfway, her arms wrapped around his waist and her face pressed to his chest.

"I keep crying on you," she groaned.

"I don't mind, as long as I get to hold you. Why did you leave?"

"I told you I didn't know how to say goodbye to you. After last night, I knew it'd be better for both of us to make a clean break."

Oliver pulled her back by the shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"I don't want a clean break. I want to be with you."

"Listen Flynn, I know this was an intense week. An incredible, mind-blowing week. But this isn't my life. I have no idea where I am going or what my future holds. I am giving you an out. No strings, remember?"

Oliver shook his head, "No that's not what I want. I want you."

"You think you do, but you don't. The shininess will wear off soon and you will need to move on. I get that. I understand that, but that is not what I want in my life."

Oliver reared back as if he was struck. Is that what she thought of him? Of course that had been him in the past, but not with her, never with her.

"I know what I want, and no matter how long it takes, I will prove that this is more than a fling. I need you, Angel."

"I believe right now you do. And maybe you will make us both happy and prove me wrong. Give me your phone. Promise me you won't look until I'm gone. Take a week and if you still want to be with me, call me."

"What's your name? I'll call you now."

She shook her head and took his offered phone. She typed quickly and closed it. Oliver shoved it into his pocket. With her in front of him, he needed to touch her, kiss her before the week-long separation.

He pulled her into his arms, kissed her waiting mouth. He made it count, held her tight, bent her, his hand on the back of her head. She sighed and held onto him, fighting him for control. The restaurant went silent, everything stopped for him in that instant. He still wanted to beg her. But it would only be a week and he could be with her again. She reluctantly pulled away, her eyes wide and lips swollen.

He sat across from her, their hands laced together waiting for a bus to separate them. The room was stuffy and Oliver took off his jacket. He focused on her face, from the curve of her cheek to the shade of blue of her eyes. The apple cinnamon smell of her shampoo. They didn't talk and only soaked in their last moments together.

Oliver heard the bus before he saw it, breaks screeching in protest. Her hands shook in his. Together they stood up, walked toward their separation. It was temporary, Oliver promised them both.

He stopped and tugged on her hand. She turned to look up at him.

"I'll see you soon, okay? One week and I will come after you. This isn't over between us."

She nodded and pulled him into her arms. He kissed her forehead, her eyes, her nose, each cheek, and then finally her lips.

"See you later, Flynn."

She pulled away from him climbed aboard the bus, Oliver walked down the sidewalk mirroring her movements. She sat by the window and pressed her hand to the glass. Oliver pressed his palm over hers. Her eyes watered and her hand shook. She mouthed, _I love you_ as the bus pulled away.

It was half a block away when he started to run after the bus. He didn't say it back and she needed to know. Cars honked at him, a bike near hit him, people stopped to glare and blocked his way. The bus turned and he never got to tell her.

He stumbled back to the cafe, paid for a bottle of water. He grabbed his jacket throwing it in the back of the Bronco. She'd said to wait but he decided that he didn't have to wait, he just needed her. It wasn't until he got to the house that he realized the phone was gone. He rushed back but, no one had seen it. He checked the Bronco, but no sign of it.

With each passing day and no sign of the phone or his Angel, Oliver had no choice but to try and find her another way. It might take longer but he would find her again.

 **June 2012**

Afternoon turned into late evening before Oliver finished his story. Yvonne listened and rarely spoke. Sometime during the story she had gotten up and ordered a pizza, hot wings, and breadsticks. She relished the food, but gestured for him to continue.

After her fourth slice she threw down the crust, rubbed her belly. Oliver watched concerned. She hadn't said anything about his story yet. She didn't look mad, she wasn't crying instead she looked satisfied.

"Lord I have missed my carbs, I couldn't eat one more salad. So Oliver, you seriously left the love of your life on a bus, and never told her you loved her back. Ugh, men. I have no idea how humanity has survived as long as they have. Well, women of course, that's how."

"Yvonne, you're not taking this exactly how I thought you would."

"Oliver, I have seen your panic attacks. I noticed your distraction. Most of all, I know that what we have is based on friendship. We respect each other and work well together and when someone asked why we weren't married we said _sure sounds good._ For a while I thought you were gay, and were using me as your beard. Which I support one hundred percent."

Oliver watched in bewilderment and surprise. Yvonne had thought he was gay. She knew he didn't cheat, he was too busy to cheat. But their sex life was sporadic, she never complained when he was too tired or stayed late in the office. But she knew something was wrong and it never stopped her from agreeing to the wedding.

"Why are we getting married anyway?" Oliver wondered out loud.

"A tax write off," Yvonne shrugged and laughed. "Oliver, I'm joking. The look on your face. Seriously, we were getting married because it felt right at the time. But the closer we got to the wedding, the more it felt as if we were playing a game of chicken, waiting to see who would be the first to put on the brakes. Don't get me wrong, we could have made it work. But after that story, there is no way I can marry you. You need to go find this girl."

Oliver laughed, dragged a hand down his face. He'd been worried about how she would take it, and here she was encouraging him to go after another woman.

"Though I've got to say that you make a lot more sense knowing the story. All the times you came to my office asking for more files, more employees. I wonder why you kept coming back for more. For the longest time I thought you were a horrible boss and everyone kept leaving. Then you asked me out and things started making more sense. I have enjoyed our time together, but we both know something was missing and now I know what that is. Oliver you found something rare and I will never forgive you if you give up on that."

"I really have no idea what to say here."

Yvonne patted his shoulder, "You are just lucky you chose me. So, what can I do to help?"

"Yv, you don't have to do that."

"I want to meet her, just as much as I want to see how this story ends. Because it shouldn't end here. You forcing yourself to be with someone else, unhappy. Especially since I was that someone. If you can find true love, then maybe it does exist, and I won't settle for a pretty face."

"A part of me is a little offended, but I know I will just be grateful. John and Tommy were looking into women under thirty, who were geniuses with technology. We are staying close to the West Coast, for Angel's personal choices and dislike for the East."

Yvonne stood up and paced the room, she accidentally kicked her toe against a cardboard box. She bent over and hissed in pain.

"What the hell do you have in here, a bowling ball?"

She pushed aside the top layer of clothes and pulled out a metal tool box.

"Really, why the hell do you keep a tool box in your bedroom? What is it in here anyway? Sex toys?"

She opened the box, lifted the tray and pulled out a grey cell phone. Oliver threw himself forward snapping the phone from her hand. The tool box had been in his Bronco and Raisa had given it to him one day while he had been studying. He had ignored what'd she told him and waved her off. He had never bothered to open the box, his life revolved around office, work, and the search for his Angel. He placed the box up on a shelf and forgot about it. Raisa must have placed the phone in the box and never told him, she'd found it, but he had been too busy to listen or care about anything else.

"Yv!? Do you know what this is? This is it! This is the _**PHONE**_! My phone, she's in here. Shit! I need a charger. Where the fuck is the charger?"

Oliver rushed through the room throwing clothes aside, knocking boxes over. He had never been more happy android phones still had the same connection port. He plugged in and waited, he felt Yvonne standing behind him looking over his shoulder. Oliver held down the power button and waited until screen lit up. He felt gravity pushing, holding him down. Thank god it wasn't password protected.

He opened the contacts. He scrolled slowly past each name. A lot of the contacts were single first names, some only descriptions, _Blonde that does that thing, Cute twin, Crazy twin,_ and the names went on.

"How are you going to know who she is?" Yvonne joked behind him. "A Bambi, and Candi with an I. Really, Oliver? How many numbers do you have in that thing? Your playboy is showing. How in the world did you meet a smart girl at a bar?"

Oliver huffed out a breath, but he didn't answer. Yvonne was right, he had been a playboy, but that had all changed. And if he could just figure out which one of these - his thumb stopped over a contact name he didn't know. Two names, a first and a last. His mouth was dry, an ache started in his chest.

"Felicity Smoak?" he whispered.

He double tapped the contact name, he saw a cell phone number, two emails, and Las Vegas P.O. Box. Even her birthday was updated. It was details, she had given him all of her details and put them in his hand and he had lost it.

"Fe-licity, her name is Felicity. It suits her, she radiates happiness. Smoak, Smoak, why does... _ **Fuck!**_ Holy shit, I've been emailing her for weeks. I had no idea. It was her I was supposed to have a meeting with today. Oh god, I need to sit down."

Oliver sat on his bed, his head between his legs. He took slow deep breaths. After a moment passed he jumped up, startled Yvonne who had placed a hand on his shoulder.

"No, I need to call her. I need to see if she remembers me. Do you think her number's stayed the same? It's been five years. I've got to try, right? Yeah, I've got to try, you're right. What do I say? Hi, remember me. I never forgot you and I never stopped trying to find you?"

"Oliver, breathe. Take a deep breath and let it out. Hi is a good place to start. But a calm Oliver makes a lot more sense than the panic freaked out Oliver."

He nodded and relaxed his grip on the phone. Worried he might break it. He took a few more deep breaths, looked at Yvonne and then pressed call. The phone rang three times, before the line connected.

"Hello?" A deep voice answered.

"Hello? I'm calling for Felicity Smoak? Is this her number?" Oliver kept his voice even, when he wanted to demand.

"Oh crap, I must have grabbed her phone by mistake. This is her boyfriend Dylan, if you give me your name I'll let her know when I get home that you called."

Oliver cursed in his head, boyfriend, home. Were they serious? Did they live together? Was he too late?

"This is Oliver Queen and it's about our recent merger. Please have her call me as soon as possible." He used his business professional voice.

"Sure man, will do."

The line disconnected. Oliver's body slumped to the floor. Visions of her laughing with someone else, making love with someone else and laughing with this Dylan filled his head. He was lost in his own despair that he didn't hear Yvonne.

"What the hell are you doing? Are you giving up? Now!? You have a damn name, go find her. Get your tight ass up and go get your girl."

"She has a boyfriend. Her company is out of San Francisco," he muttered.

"So!? A few hours ago you had a fiancee and were getting married. Things change. You have a real chance here, but you need to go out and find her. Oliver, go!"

He looked at Yvonne, a hand on her hip the other pointed out the door. Her face was fierce and determined. Oliver pulled himself up off the floor kissed her cheek, grabbed his wallet and both phones. With his current phone he pulled up a number.

"Yes, this is Oliver Queen, I need the jet in the air within the hour. A solo flight to San Francisco." Before walking out of the room he looked back at his friend. "Thank you."

"Go make a fool of yourself and get the girl."

"I'll do my best."

Oliver rushed down a flight of stairs, he was glad the private jet had a secure hanger and he wouldn't waste time in security lines. He had wasted enough time.

 **AN: This is the last chapter of flashback. You now know their whole story and backgtound. Thank you for you support.**


	9. Chapter 8 The search

**Starling City**

Felicity's leg bounced up and down as she stared out the small window of the plane. It was after nine and night had fallen across Starling City. The city was larger than she imagined. Somewhere out there, is Oliver Queen and she was going to find him. The only problem was she had no idea where to start.

During the flight she had done a more thorough internet search on the man she knew as Flynn. Before the summer of 2005, Ollie Queen lived for the spotlight. He relished in drunken debauchery, drug induced haze, and public lude behavior. And then there was the girls. So many girls. His name was linked to starlets, models, debutantes and everything inbetween. Tall, gorgeous, brunette women. Everything she was not.

Felicity scrolled past the stories, her unease growing until she noticed something about his red rimmed glazed eyes. Ollie was empty, cold, drowning, he had no sparkle in his blue eyes. She compared a picture of him two months before Tahoe with one she had taken and it was two different people. In her picture he was looking at the camera his smile bright, his eyes filled with an inner light, he radiated joy and happiness.

After Tahoe, he became reclusive. He no longer donned the front pages of magazines with a new girl on his arm. When he was spotted, it was in school libraries, carrying books and _being boring_ as one reporter wrote. There was speculation on his change in behavior, most reports claimed rehab, one even claimed alien abduction, her favorite was the one on cult brainwashing. Oliver wore hats, sunglasses, hooded sweatshirts. He kept his head down and his life private.

He graduated with a business degree and a minor in internet security. That part had surprised her. She thought he preferred cars, to computers. -Joining his family's company he worked with human resources filling QC's IT department with the best and the brightest. Felicity knew some of the names on the list he created. Oliver Queen didn't discriminate, hiring the best no matter of race, sex, orientation, or age. He went to data conferences, colleges, going to company after company always searching for more and never satisfied for long. Or was he searching someone special, Felicity wondered.

"No, that can't be it," Felicity muttered under her breath.

Curtis stirred beside her, his head on her shoulder. Felicity didn't understand why he was here. What possessed him to take this journey with her? He hadn't talked to Paul before they left and Felicity was worried that she would cause problems between the couple. Which she found funny considering she was on her way to interrupt or stop a wedding of another couple.

The wedding location was hard to track down. To discourage media coverage the couple had booked three venues, with half hour staggered start times plus the continued assurance by Moira Queen the wedding would take place at Queen Manor. Leaving Felicity with four possible locations, starting after four PM even hacking couldn't help her, each location was paid for, the food, and booze ordered. The secondary sites were to be used for other smaller weddings. Yvonne had set up a twitter campaign for a _Dream Wedding._ Videos and letters were sent in, pleading the case of a bride in need. Only the couples selected would know where and when their wedding would take place. Felicity thought it was sweet, useful, an added layer of protection from the media.

Felicity spent way too much time looking into the woman Oliver had asked to marry. She was stunning, smart, a brilliant mind for business, even her tweets were funny. The few images she found of the two of them together had been nice. He held her in one, Yvonne looked up to him while he stared into the distance. Felicity saw something in his familiar face, longing and a hint of sadness. She wondered if she was trying to force distances between the couple so she would feel better about go through with her plan to stop the wedding.

Now she needed an actual plan.

Felicity had no idea what she would say to get into the wedding much less how she would get to Oliver. She figured it would be easier to approach him at home, but would she also meet the fiance. Felicity would be so nervous she might accidently proposition them for a threesome. She tried to write out her thoughts, but she was unable to move past that he never called.

When she missed her bus to Starling City, Queen Consolidated human resources department refused to push back her hire date. QC rescinded their job offer and Felicity was left with few options. Most of the companies that had courted her after graduation, no longer had positions available. She spent hours reaching out to companies until a small startup in San Francisco made her an offer.

Barbara Grayson created Oracle Forensics; a intelligence company dedicated to identifying and disrupting criminal networks operating on the internet. Barbara had created a platform that uses data science and specialized algorithms to find unique signatures of criminal conduct in the clear and dark webs and provide law enforcement with immediate, actionable intelligence to identify and prosecute criminals who prey on the most vulnerable.

Felicity enjoyed the work more than she thought she would. She had never considered a career in law enforcement but she loved taking down the bad guys.

Her first week after Tahoe had been hectic, learning her job in the company, trying to find a place to live. She pretended that she didn't have time to worry over her phone, but she checked her emails, her social media and called her phone every few nights to see if it was still working. By the second week it was harder to ignore the ache in her chest. The fourth week she spent her days working and her nights crying into her ice cream.

She hadn't noticed her period was late until about a month into her new job. Felicity had been terrified that she was barely twenty-one pregnant and alone. She hesitated to take a pregnancy test, convinced that the two blue line would make it real. After a week of sleepless nights and nausea she had run to the late night pharmacy and picked up two tests.

Sitting on her bathtub she waited for the timer, she could envision how her life would be. Chasing a small blonde boy or girl with dimples and blue eyes. Somewhere in those few minutes she realized that she wanted to be pregnant, to hold onto something from her time with Flynn. It was irrational, but she wanted it.

Felicity had sobbed into her pillow, when both tests had been negative.

That night she threw away the small bear he had won for her along with the test. She locked away his pictures and shut away her pain. She tried to take off the star necklace but her hand wouldn't stop shaking long enough to open the catch. She left it on as a reminder to follow her own path. Work became her life, her computer's her babies. Felicity refused to open her heart to anyone ever again.

"Are we there yet?" Curtis grumbled into her shoulder.

"We are circling the city now, not much longer."

Curtis sat up and rubbed a hand over his face, "Any idea where we are going?"

"I'm not sure if showing up at his door step in the middle of the night is the best idea. It's after hours so I doubt that we can get into QC. The wedding is tomorrow evening, I'm just not sure where. Honestly why am I even going there? This is one of the craziest things I have ever done. First was going off with Flynn, I mean Oliver Queen. Do people always call him by both names? For some reason whenever I realize who Flynn was I say both names. Do you say both names? Who the hell gets called by both of their names? You known, you can stop me any time."

Curtis patted her hand. "You are an idiot in love. You are doing something crazy to fight for a chance of finding that love again. We might be chasing a dream but you are still going after something bigger, better for yourself. I am so proud to be your friend, and witness the real Felicity Smoak."

"Keep telling me that when I am banging on the glass window à la _The Graduate_."

"I'll make sure to keep the bus running, when you race out of the church with your man."

Felicity snorted and bumped her shoulder into Curtis.

"Tonight it's too late to find him, I say we get a hotel room. Sleep a few hours and then start the search tomorrow." Felicity pulled up her tablet and started searching for a hotel room.

"Felicity, are you sure you are not just delaying the reunion?"

"No...Maybe, but it still makes sense to rest, before I make a bigger fool of myself."

Curtis shook his head and didn't comment. Felicity went back to her search. Once inside the hotel room, Felicity was unable to stop her brain from spinning. Curtis was in the room next to her and alone she knew that she was making a huge mistake. Looking through the life and times of Oliver Queen was making her sick to her stomach. She couldn't approach him with her bruised heart in fear he won't remember her. Felicity knew that without Curtis here she would have already turned around.

She sat her laptop down screen up and a slideshow of pictures from her time with Oliver. With each picture she found her eyes growing heavy and when sleep claimed her, she was greeted by dreams of an untaken road.

Time slipped through her fingers and the clock mocked her. Felicity could find anything on the net, except where Oliver Queen was hiding in Starling City. Curtis had encouraged her through the morning, even got her to go to his known address. Which only lead her to a cranky landlord, who refused to tell her anything, besides that the apartment was already sold. QC was closed for the weekend and security wouldn't talk to her no matter how many business contracts she had with the Queens.

The first bridegroom she had barged in on had dropped a bottle of scotch on his foot. Felicity had apologized profusely, with Curtis chuckling behind her. She offered to get him ice and slammed the door on the wide eyed shocked room. The second bridegroom was being dressed and held up by his groomsmen, the smell of alcohol in the room almost knocked her over. She told the planner to get strong coffee and wished the couple the best of luck.

"We are never going to make it in time, the hotel is on the other side of town." Felicity groaned.

"We have to try, Felicity. Don't give up now."

"Curtis, I have run through two hotels, barged into two rooms and sputtered through two embarrassing apologies. I can't do it for a third time."

"Just one more, please."

"Pssh! That's if it's not at the Queen Manor. Which is twenty to thirty minutes out of town, surrounded by a gate and security patrol. If the wedding is there then we are screwed."

"We've got to try! You have got to try! I won't let you give up, not like I did." Curtis grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the taxi.

"Curtis, what are you talking about? You are happily married."

"Paul left me, he said that my work is more important than he is. And I couldn't even argue with him. I have been so caught up, that I haven't talked to him in months. I forgot our anniversary, our anniversary Felicity. He walked out and I haven't seen or talked to him for two weeks. He won't take my calls. I screwed up. I didn't fight for the love of my life. I didn't even try to go after him."

Felicity pulled her tall friend into a hug. "Curtis I am so sorry, I had no idea. Why are you here? Go home and find your husband. You have been amazing and I know, I would never have gotten this far without you. I promise I will keep looking, but you, my friend need to go make an idiot out of yourself."

Curtis looked out the window for a moment, he turned to her, his smile brightened.

"Don't stop, don't ever stop looking. You deserve to be happy, with him or without him, you deserve it. Driver can you let me out at the corner, I'm going the wrong way."

The car pulled to the curb, Curtis jumped out before it even fully stopped. He pulled his bag from the trunk and poked his head in to kiss Felicity on the cheek.

"Go get'm tiger!" She called out.

Felicity arrived at the last location, the Westin. On her way to the hotel she had pulled up the hotel schematics and found the banquet room the service was being held at and the adjoining rooms used by the bridal party. The first hotel she ran through had been a nightmare of empty corridors and locked doors. She refused to be caught off guard again.

The wedding was on the Imperial floor, in the Alexandra Room on the thirty-second floor; considered to be one of the most exquisite wedding venues in Starling City. The room had a spectacular wraparound view framed by fourteen foot floor to ceiling windows. Alexandra's is considered a lavish glass castle with hundreds of tiny pin spot lights for illumination. The images Felicity found were jaw dropping, not to mention the close to three hundred per person dinner. The other venues had been beautiful as well, but this was the ultimate in luxury weddings.

She should have started her search here.

Felicity adjusted her glasses, tightened her ponytail, and slid a hand down her dress. What do you wear to the wedding of the man you love, who was about to marry another women? She picked up a form fitted sleeveless pale pink silk midi dress covered in hand painted pastel posies. A bold blue line, ran the center of the dress, from the v-neck to the hem. She paired the dress with slim black stilettos that buckled around her ankles.

The butterflies in her belly had intensified their fluttering and she was sure they multiplied. She stared at the numbers slowly increasing. The higher she rose above the city, the more her nerves took over.

The elevator doors opened on the thirtieth floor, an older elegant blonde woman stepped a board. The woman appeared agitated glaring at her watch, her phone pressed to her ear. Felicity stepped back, tried to ignore the one sided conversation. She had almost succeeded until a name cut into her mental speech.

"Oliver Jonas, this is your mother and I will not be ignored. I have been trying to get a hold of you all day. If Yvonne and you have eloped I will never forgive you. You have a responsibility to your family and your guests to be here."

Felicity turned her head to the woman, Oliver's mother, Moira Queen. She recognized her now. The regal grace of a woman who owned half the city below. In Felicity's late night internet excavation into all things Queen, she had learned that Moira was no trophy wife. She helped create and expand QC, as an equal partner to Robert Queen. She was considered cold and ruthless in business. The press unforgivingly dubbed her, the _Ice Queen._

As a woman with her own company Felicity understood that most women in business were wrongly labeled or unfairly judged. Felicity believed people should be judge by their actions not by preconceived notions. She did admit that she was a little intimidated, by the woman currently scolding her son's voice mail. Mrs. Queen ended her call and pressed another series of numbers.

"Mr Diggle, this is Moira Queen again, has there been any word from my son?" Her clipped voiced filled the glass elevator. "This is unacceptable, remind me again what I pay you for Mr. Diggle. We will discuss this further once my son has been found. Notify me immediately when you have heard from him or Yvonne."

 _Hate to be that guy,_ Felicity thought.

The other woman's head snapped around to Felicity, ice blue eyes froze her in place. Felicity's body went rigid, her eyes widened at the dawning realization she had spoken out loud. Heat flooded her face and cold captured her racing heart.

"Excuse me? Do you make it a habit of eavesdropping on private conversations?"

"Not normally, no. I did have a job once that required me to snoop on chat rooms. But that's not really eavesdropping it's more skim reading or trolling. If you know what I mean," Felicity chuckled nervously and then gulped. "Not that you would frequent chat rooms, right? But this is a public elevator and you were talking really loud. I didn't mean to comment, it just kind of happened. I'm sorry, I talk when I'm nervous and you keep staring at me and I can't stop."

Moira Queen's eye narrow and a perfect eyebrow arched up. Felicity felt exposed, laid bare, examined and found inferior.

"Maybe you should learn a little restraint, young lady."

Felicity nodded once, tilted her head to the side and pursed her lips. Felicity may have been caught off guard by the Queen matriarch but she wouldn't bow down to her, pun intended.

"True, maybe one day. But not today. Hope you find Oliver before the wedding. That could be really awkward, maybe not as awkward as this, but that's really my awkwardness seeping into the confined space we are in. Is the elevator even moving? It's only supposed to be two more floors."

"You know Oliver? No, don't answer that. I don't have time to listen to anymore of your nonsense. You're not on my guest list? So why are you here? Again don't tell me, you don't matter."

"Your guest list? But I thought this was Oliver and Yvonne's, ahhh never mind. Hey I matter," Felicity huffed. "I was dropping off something for him."

"Sure, I've heard that before. I know why you're here. Do you really think you are the first girl to try and stop this wedding? You think Oliver and you had something special years ago and now you're here to tell him how you feel. You're not his normal type, but that doesn't matter he loves Yvonne and he's marrying her today."

"Wow, nice to know how you see me. But Mrs. Queen I am the CEO of Smoak Systems and was bringing over the signed contracts of our partnership with QC. Oliver Queen was the one that brokered the deal, and told my associate to bring them over as soon as possible, before he was out of town."

"It is Saturday night and you came here ten minutes before Oliver's wedding to have _paperwork signed_. Do you really expect me to believe that? You can lie to yourself, but don't try to lie to me. If you tell Oliver, you will rip his world apart if Yvonne finds out. And a part of Oliver will always blame you. I have no idea when you met my son, but I can assure you Oliver was a different person when he was younger. He is not that person anymore. For your own sake, leave and have your associate bring the paperwork next week."

The elevator dinged the doors slid open, Moira looked at her once more with pity as she stepped out. Felicity stood frozen, held captive by self doubt. She was a fool. She let her imagination run away from her and put her heart in danger again. She knew better. Seeing the pictures, discovering Flynn's true identity had thrown her life in a tail spin. She walked away from a stable, sweet guy, all for a fading memory.

Maybe it wasn't Oliver she'd missed, maybe it was who she was when she was with him. He had brought something out in her and instead of nurturing herself she locked it away. She locked herself away and left the key in the hands of a man that she didn't really know.

Felicity needed to say goodbye to her past and start looking to her future. She may never see Oliver, but she knows where she can go to say goodbye to the memory of Flynn.

One last trip to Tahoe. A long overdue goodbye, in the place where it all started. Even if it was only to a house.

Felicity pulled out her tablet and made arrangements. She rented a convertible car, changed out of her dress into a pair of relaxed fit jeans, a red tank top and her favorite panda flats. She decided she needed a long drive into the mountains on a warm summer night with the top down. According to her GPS, she had an almost seven hour drive.

After a quick stop for snacks, Felicity headed north east and wondered what fate held in store for her next.

 **San Francisco**

Oliver would have had better luck flying commercial. Mid flight one of the engines failed and forced the pilots to make an emergency landing in Monterey. During the landing the second engine failed. The emergency crews had met them on the ground. He'd been checked over by the paramedics even after his repeated assurance that he was fine. The whole process took hours. Surprisingly it had stayed under the press' radar at least for now.

He knew that if he didn't get out of there soon then he would be facing an army of press. He'd be questioned about the flight. Then why he was leaving Starling City the night before his wedding. Oliver had asked Yvonne to hold off making any announcements so that he could travel under the radar. She had no problems agreeing and made her own arrangements for her escape from the city. Yvonne took her a flight, heading south to Costa Rica. She told him she didn't want to waste the two week stay at the Springs Resort private villa.

Yvonne had no qualms about a vacationing alone. Oliver had told her to have fun and stay out of jungles with strange men. She made him promise to tell her what happened with his _Felicity_.

The plane was no longer an option. It was a two and half hour drive to San Francisco from Monterey. By the time he got to the City it would be well past two in the morning and Oliver had no idea how he was going to find her. He did the only thing he could think of, he called Diggle.

"Oliver? What the hell man? Do you know what time it is?" Diggle muttered thickly.

"Dig, I found her. But I need your help."

"Hold on, let me get a pen." Oliver heard rustling and hissed out curse words. "What do you need? Who is she? Where is she?" Diggle woke up a little more with each question.

"Her name is Felicity Smoak. I have her date of birth. I know the name of her company, and her business associates. But I have no idea how I'd find her in a city of almost a million people. Where do I start? Do I show up at her house at three am and hope she remembers me?"

"Yeah, that isn't the best idea. Where are you anyway? What about the wedding?"

"Yvonne found the cell phone and encouraged me to find her. The wedding is off and I'm on my way to San Francisco. Well, I was before the jet engine failed."

"Wait, what!? San Francisco? Engine failed? What am I supposed to tell your family?"

"Don't tell them anything. I will explain when I get back. Yvonne is on her way out of the country so she'll be out of reach. I'll warn Tommy and Thea. My mom is going to be all over you, I'm sorry."

"You're going to make it up to me. It won't be easy but I'll distract her for as long as I can. Send me that info and I'll reach out to some of my contacts. I hope you find her Oliver. But you should get some rest before you go knocking on her door. Hate for her to call the cops on you."

"Good point, I'll get a hotel room before I drive up the coast. I'm going to turn off my phone after I call Tommy and Thea. I'll check in every few hours."

"Good luck Oliver. Can't wait to meet her."

"Thanks John, good luck with my mom."

Before disconnecting Oliver heard Diggle curse again. He called Tommy and explained everything. His sister was a harder phone call, she wanted to know everything. But after the story of meeting Felicity, she had wished him luck, and told him he owed her big for the hell she was about to go through.

The morning drive up the coast was beautiful. The ocean view made the Saturday traffic tolerable even if it added an additional hour to his drive time. By the time he arrived to the address Diggle sent him it was afternoon. The five story building was a modern townhouse-style condominium located in the heart of Mission Bay at the city's south waterfront. Finding parking was difficult and required a few circles around the block.

There was a man behind a desk in the lobby. He was talking to a tall skinny man with brown hair. Oliver noticed a key pad near the elevator doors, if he wanted up he was going to need the code. Left without a choice he approached the two men and waited to interrupt.

"What do you mean she's gone? When did she leave?"

"I'm not allowed to discuss that with you. I already got in trouble for what happened yesterday."

"Come on Jimmy, she's not answering her or my phone and I really need to talk to her before it's too late."

The man with his back to Oliver rubbed a hand over the back of his neck.

"All I am at liberty to say is that Miss Smoak is not at home. I will inform her that you were here."

"Jimmy, I'm worried about her. She isn't acting like herself."

"I understand sir, but she still isn't at home. I will tell you that she went off with Mr. Holt and they looked excited."

"Curtis? I'm locked out of her phone and I don't have mine. Do you have his number? I really need to talk to her."

Oliver turned on his phone he had Curtis Holt's number. He wondered if Curtis knew about the past Oliver had with his boss. Nothing from their last conversation suggested that he had known. The guy in front of him must be the boyfriend that had answered the phone last night. He sounded anxious with no idea where Felicity was.

A loud ringing filled the lobby, the two men turned toward him. Oliver looked at his screen and saw it was his mother calling. No way was he taking that call in front of witnesses. He silenced his phone and met the eyes of Felicity Smoak's boyfriend.

"Sorry," Oliver offered.

"Aren't you Oliver Queen? Are you here to see Felicity? We talked on the phone yesterday."

"Last I checked. I take it Miss Smoak isn't here." Oliver gritted his teeth to hold back his snarl.

This man had no idea that he was dating the woman he loved. Oliver didn't need to take it out on him, even if he was thinking about breaking his upturned nose.

"She took off and Jimmy here won't tell me where she went."

"Wouldn't be much of a doorman if he did. What if you were a stalker?" Oliver shrugged.

"Jimmy knows me, and I'm her boyfriend. Even if we are on a break."

Oliver shoved his hands in his pockets, to keep himself from shaking the other man. A break? What did that mean? Does that mean she's single? Where the hell did she go?

"Gentlemen I believe it's time for both of you to leave. Miss Smoak is not here and neither of you are on her approved list."

"Wait I'm not on the list?" Pig nosed boyfriend asked. "I was on the list yesterday? What the hell happened?"

"I received and updated list this morning by email. I'm sorry sir, but you are no longer on the list. Until she returns, you will not be allowed into the elevators." Jimmy looked over to Oliver. "You sir are also not allowed up."

"Thank you, I'll be going."

Oliver walked out of the building and pulled out his phone. He pressed the contact number for Curtis and waited for the line to pick up. It rang twice and went to voicemail. Oliver ended the call and tried again.

"Mr. Queen do you have a moment?"

Oliver turned to see he'd been followed by the boyfriend.

"Why are you looking for my girlfriend?"

"It is business related? And non of yours." Oliver snapped.

"The scion of a million dollar company doesn't make house calls on the weekend. I would think that you have people to do that for you."

"Multi-billion dollar company, and it's our willingness to go above and beyond that keeps us ahead of the game. Now if you excuse me I have better things to do than to explain my business etiquette."

Oliver walked away without looking back. He imagined knocking the snug kid on his ass. He might be right and more observant than the normal person, but Oliver wasn't going to confess his love for Felicity if she wasn't there to hear it.

Oliver's phone rang and he looked hoping to see Curtis' name instead he saw Diggle.

"Dig? What's going on?"

"Besides you mother on a rampage, not much? My job has been threatened at least a dozen times in the last hour alone."

"She can't fire you, you're _my_ bodyguard. And my friend."

"Thanks, but I do a lot better when I know where you are. The press knows about the emergency landing. I think your mother turned a lovely shade of purple when she heard. A picture of Yvonne surfaced of her boarding a plane alone. You better get indoors and out of sight while this blows over. I know you just found this girl, but I don't think you want her to be dragged into the middle of a media circus. No one will believe that you haven't been cheating on Yvonne with her. She will be dragged through the mud and called a homewrecker."

Oliver rubbed a hand over his face and looked out towards the water. Diggle was right. Nothing about the next few weeks would be easy, until a bigger scandal hit. It wouldn't matter that Felicity and him haven't been together for years, she would be targeted. Not only would his family be demanding answer about the called off wedding but the paparazzi would hound him.

Was this really the time to reconnect with Felicity? He selfishly thought, hell yes it was. But was that fair for Felicity? Probably not.

"Yeah Dig, I'll head out of town. I'll call when I get somewhere safe. I'll even call my mother, just need a good bottle of scotch to do that."

"What are you going to do about the girl?"

"I don't know. I just found her Dig, how can I let her go again?"

"There is no easy answer. For now get out of sight. You know where she is now and it's only a matter of time before you'll see her again."

"I've waited this long, what's a few more weeks. See ya."

Olive disconnected before Diggle could answer. He had heard enough from his friend. Oliver wasn't mad at Diggle for being the barer of bad news, he was just mad that he would have to wait longer to see her. Why was fate keeping them apart?

Back in his car he programmed in the Tahoe address and headed out of the city.

 **Incline Village**

Driving through Incline Village always brought him a sense of peace. He didn't come here enough. His plan was to move here permanently in a few years, work from home. Oliver had never talked to Yvonne about his plan because he knew that he would never bring her here. He could never picture another woman in _their_ place. It belonged to Angel and Him. Or Felicity. He needed to get used to using her name.

During the ride up he had called the caretakers and had them set up the house. They no longer questioned him about his preference for the smaller house on the property. Oliver pulled his rental car into the garage. He was greeted by clean sheets, stocked cupboards, and an empty house.

Oliver was too tired to eat. He climbed the stairs, kicked his shoes off and crawled into bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long day of phone calls and explaining. One of those calls he hoped included Felicity. But that was for tomorrow.

Sunshine woke him up the next morning, he had forgotten to close the blinds. Oliver pushed himself up out of bed and headed to the sliding door. The view still managed to stun him even after all these years. The mountains, the water breaking through the trees, sunlight sparkling off the surface of the lake. Oliver stepped through the door onto the balcony. A warm breeze caressed his skin. He could swear the air smelled of apples and cinnamons, maybe it was a memory brought on by being back here.

Oliver placed his hands on the rail. Everything made more sense when he was here. He wanted to find and talk to Felicity, to see if everything between them was still as powerful as he remembered. But he also didn't want her to suffer, because of him. He would wait to call her, wait until the media no longer cared. He only hoped that he wouldn't be too late.

He stood up and turned to head back inside when a flash of red caught his eye. Oliver looked down, a women stood on the lower patio, near the pond waterfall. She wore jeans, a red tank top, her blonde hair was pulled up in a ponytail. Oliver's heart thundered in his head, he felt hot and cold flashes throughout his body. She was here, did she know he'd been looking for her. It didn't matter, she was _here_ now.

Oliver ran through the house, out into the summer morning. The familiar smell of her shampoo slowed his foot falls. It hadn't been a memory, it had been _her_. It no longer mattered to him what the press would say, this was more important than gossip or image. The life he had wanted was only a few feet away, all he had to do was convince her to give him another chance. He wanted to know her details, the good with the bad. He wanted to know everything about her. No more nicknames. He wanted Felicity and Oliver, not Flynn and Angel.

His body was trembling from anticipation. Oliver wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her but he knew that he needed to restrain himself before making a move on her. Somehow she didn't hear him approach, her back was to him.

He licked his dry lips opened his mouth. This was it. This was the first meeting all over again. What the hell does he say?

"Felicity Smoak? Hi, I'm Oliver Queen."

 **AN: Wow only one real chapter left, can you believe it. Please forgive me for the minor cliff hanger, I promise to make it up to you in the next chapter. For every review, favorite, I just want to say thank you to my readers.**


	10. Chapter 9: Reunited

_**AN:** It has been long road to get to this chapter. For all the people that have commented, shared and kudos this story I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your support has kept me going when my RL had gotten overwhelming. This last weekend I finished this story with the joy of the FANDOM at HVFF San Jose. With the high of hugs from the people that bring our characters to life and love I finished this chapter. _

_I had help a lot of help with this chapter thank you tdgal1 and almondblossomme._

 **Incline Village**

Felicity parked near the main gate, over the years she had found the perfect spot to jump the fence. She never came here during the day but she hoped that the early morning would protect her. Considering most of the Queen family was back in Starling, she felt sure the property would be empty.

During the drive up, Felicity had listened to her go to audiobook when she was feeling down, _Harry Potter and the Philosopher's 's Stone._ The narrator always managed to add a little magic to the reading and she fell in love with the story all over again. It was better than listening to sad love songs on repeat.

There was only so many times she could listen to _A Thousand Years,_ by Christina Perri.

Felicity looked over the fence, no cars in the drive, the houses were dark, all good signs of her success. She wouldn't stay long, she'd be gone before anyone noticed her. Stepping on a fallen log Felicity pushed herself up and over the wall. As she walked through the tall trees onto the cobblestone driveway she noticed details; a perfect summer morning, birds singing in the trees, fluffy white clouds in the sky, the smell of pine, cut grass, crisp and fresh air.

In the previous years she would peek in the windows, but today it was about letting go. Each step slow and sure as she walked between the two houses, glanced toward the smaller building, and smiled. Somewhere along the drive she had let go of her bitterness of being forgotten. Felicity had been given a gift of love and if it could only be for seven days, it had been worth it. Some people waited a lifetime and never found the kind of love she had experienced. She had told him that she would never regret their time together, but she had forgotten her own promise.

She walked past the large patio with the wooden furniture stepping down the stone steps toward the fire pit and waterfall pond. Felicity looked out toward the lake. She had so many happy memories from being here. It was hard to let the house and property go but she knew somethings were not meant to be.

Felicity wondered where Oliver was at this moment. Was he married now? Did he run off with his bride, far from prying eyes? She hoped that he was happy, that he was loved. With the new contract between their companies, she might see him again. If he remembered her, she would just figure out the fastest exit. She'd forgiven him for not calling, but she couldn't watch him love another woman.

She wrapped her arms around herself and closed her eyes. Felicity tilted her face up to the sun and took a deep breath. Slowly she let it out, she let go of the years of hurt, let go of the sadness, she let go of Flynn and she let go of Oliver. She was ready to find her own happiness, start a new beginning with an open heart.

An excited buzzing started under her skin, her heart skipped a few beats. The heat of the sun intensified against her back.

"Felicity Smoak? Hi, I'm Oliver Queen." That excitement running through her only ever had one source - Flynn, Oliver, her lost love.

He sounded out of breath, his words just above a whisper. As if he didn't want to interrupt her or he wasn't sure if it was really her.

Felicity's eyes popped open. She turned around slowly. Oliver Queen stood a few feet away from her. He was barefoot, in jeans, and a black t-shirt, and he hadn't shaved in a few days creating a sexy scruff. His sleep mussed hair was trimmed short. His shoulders were broader, the t-shirt tight across his chest. The jeans hung low on his trim hips.

How was it possible that he was better looking now? Her eyes drank him in. The pictures had only awakened her thirst for him. Standing in front of him, her mouth dry, her palms wet, how did she ever think she could see him again in front of other people? Did she look as desperate as she felt?

Oliver's large arms were crossed over his chest, he was leaning forward on his toes. Piercing blue eyes watched her, his brows lifted. He was waiting for her to say something. Why wasn't she saying something? Just say something, anything? She'd written it down, but now her mind was blank.

She licked her lips, "Of course, I know who you are, you're Mr. Queen."

Oliver sucked in a breath as he pulled back from her, his weight shifted to his heels.

"No, Mr. Queen is my father." Oliver sounded puzzled. A cloud over those crystal blue eyes as he processed her words.

"Right, but I never slept with him, not that I want to. I mean there is nothing wrong with him besides he's married and old enough to be my father. Not that older men aren't sexy or anything - I still have a thing for David Duchovny. Who doesn't want to be his Scully? Am I right?"

Oh google, what are you doing? _Felicity_ , she berated herself. This was not how she says hi to someone, much less the man she still supposedly loved.

His lips turned up for an instant, his shoulders relaxed. The cloud disappeared like the early morning mist after the sun rises.

"I wasn't sure if you remembered me?" Oliver said gently.

Felicity tilted her head to the side scrunch up her nose. Seriously how could she forget him.

"Really?" Felicity blurted. "Not something you'd forget, or at least I wouldn't."

Oliver's arms dropped to his sides.

"Do you think I forgot you?" Oliver stared at her as the words rushed out of his mouth.

"I don't know, it was a long time ago. What are you doing here?" With a sad tone, Felicity inquired eyes trying to seek out the proof that he belonged to another but his hands were in his pockets.

"Four years, eleven months and two days," Oliver murmured.

Felicity pressed a hand to her neck, crossed her arm over her chest. Her heart was lodged in her throat. He kept track. She had counted each one of the one thousand seven hundred and ninety-nine days apart. Felicity never thought that he would have been doing the same thing.

"Umm yeah something like that. I didn't expect you to be _here_." She tried to sound indifferent.

"Why did you come?" Oliver's strained voice asking the question with intensity.

"I guess to say goodbye. You know, I tried to buy it." Felicity turned away from him, looked down to the water and back up to the house. "I like it here, liked who I was when I was here."

Oliver took a small step forward. "That was you? I didn't know it was you, never even considered the possibility. I stopped the sale. It's in my name now. I couldn't let it go, it's the only place I feel like myself. Everything makes more sense when I'm here."

She looked up at him, Oliver was watching her, meeting his eyes she felt a pull inside her chest tugging her toward him. Felicity wanted to reach out and touch him, feel his warm skin under her hands. Her palms tingled. She wanted to know if the scruff was soft or rough. How would it feel if he kissed her?

Her body leaned closer before she realized.

Felicity shook her head, stepped away from him. What was she doing? He was supposed to be getting married. Oliver Queen was a fantasy, her life is in San Francisco, running a company, maybe falling in love with someone else. That was her destiny, wasn't it?

"I've been looking for you."

Felicity resisted snorting, or at least covered it with a cough. The man who never called has been looking for her? Did he need a character reference? Why now? Did his impending marriage cause him to go through his little black book? Was he hooking up with old flames? Didn't his mother tell her other woman had come looking for him.

She wasn't being fair, to him or herself. Ten minutes ago she wanted to let it go but standing in front of him all she wanted was answers. Was what they had real for him? Why didn't he call?

"Why?"

Oliver reached out his hand hovered over her bare shoulder, she tensed in anticipation. She could feel the heat radiating between the inches of separation. His hand dropped to his side, his fingers spasmed, he rubbed his thumb over his index. He took a small step back. Felicity sighed in both disappointment and relief.

"I needed to talk to you before I-," Oliver paused, closed his eyes and looked away. "It doesn't matter now, it was a mistake."

"Talking to me was a mistake!?" Felicity exclaimed.

Oliver spun and gaped at her.

"What? No, No. I thought I'd never talk to you again. I wanted to. I don't know how many times I talked to you in my head. Sometimes you'd even yell, using your loud, surprisingly scary voice. Talking to you, seeing you that was never, will never be a mistake."

"Oh," Felicity breathed.

She was confused, the way he looked at her, everything he was saying. It was every dream she had coming true. Except Oliver had her number so he could have called anytime. Felicity never could bring herself to change it. Oliver was supposed to marry another woman yesterday and now he's here. Was his new bride here? Oh god, had she interrupted the honeymoon? She tried to ignore the burning jealousy that raged in her chest at the thought of him with another woman in _their_ place.

It wasn't fair to think that way, Felicity knew. She was a part of his past, a seven day diversion from his regular elaborate lifestyle. She couldn't be mad at him for not growing old, miserable, pining for her, forever alone. She had tried dating. Felicity couldn't blame him for her failure in that department, it was her own delusions of true lost love.

"Fel-i-city." She shivered at the way his smooth deep voice whispered her name. The way he said her name, like he savored every syllable, like he couldn't believe she was there with him. "There hasn't been a day that has passed that I haven't looked for you."

"I find that really hard to believe, considering you got married yesterday." Felicity wanted to believe him.

"No, I couldn't do it. It was a mistake. I don't even know why I let it go on as long as I did. I was doing what was expected, what I thought I was supposed to do. Even if it's not what I wanted. I really tried to forget, tried to move on with my life. I know it wasn't fair to Yvonne. I always held something back. A part of me that I no longer had to give." He didn't get married? Dare she hope that part belonged to her?

Felicity held her breath, Oliver moved closer, closing the space between them. Tears blurred her vision. He reached up, cupped her cheek, his thumb brushed her tears away. She closed her eyes. His touch was charged with dynamic energy. Her chest felt tight, ready to explode with overwhelming emotion.

She had given up hope, she had thought she'd never feel his touch again. Now he was here, his hand anchored her while the blue of his eyes sent her soaring. Oliver had unshed tears in his eyes, his hand trembled against her cheek. She saw hope, longing, and did she dare to dream, love.

"There has only been one person for me, I met her years ago in a bar. She kissed me and I gave her my heart. I never got it back, I never wanted it back. All I wanted was her, my Angel. My Felicity. I chased after your bus, tried to tell you." His words flowed over her like a soothing balm.

"I never saw you. You never called. Why didn't you call? I waited, I never stopped waiting. But you never called." Her words ended in a sob she couldn't fight.

Oliver pressed his forehead against hers, his hands fell to her shoulders.

"I ran through town to get to that damn bus. By the time I returned to the restaurant I was consumed with finding my way back to you. I had no idea how hard or long it would be before I'd see you again. I don't know when or how it happened but until two nights ago, I couldn't find and thought I'd lost that phone. I tore the house apart, went back to the restaurant, searched the streets, but it was gone. I didn't know how to find you, so I did the only thing I could, I went back to school. I joined my family's company and used every resource at my disposal, looking for you. Everything I did was to get back to you."

Felicity sniffled as she was torn between crying harder or laughing at their fate.

"I thought you forgot me. That what happened between us was all in my head. That it was a dumb dream I couldn't forget. That my feelings were one-sided."

"No, you were, _are_ the love of my life. Felicity, before I met you, I didn't have a plan. Then you walked into my life, or … danced, and you changed everything. I was lost. But with your kindness, your generosity, your compassion, your intelligence, your wit and your trust, you found me. You are the light that shines my way. And I don't know if I still deserve your trust, if I deserve you — I probably don't — but whatever has happened, whatever will happen, the way that you make me feel is the best part of my life. You are my always, and I just want the chance to be yours. I have loved you since our first kiss, and I will always love you."

Felicity surged up on her toes, she threw her arms around him. Pressed against him, she could feel his racing heartbeat. Unable to resist his pull, she followed her heart and kissed him. She felt the scratch of his scruff, the soft warm lips welcoming her home. He pulled her closer, his strong arms holding her tight deepening the kiss. Stoking the fire that they had started, his tongue danced with her own. Felicity felt every bit of her body give into him and his respond in kind.

She whimpered at the rush of sensation, the power of being made whole. It was an explosion of color in a dark universe without stars. An eruption of fire melting her frozen heart. He was the key to her future and she would never let him go again.

Oliver had imagined this moment so many times but nothing could have prepared him for the reality of holding her again. Her lips were soft and plump, Felicity's tiny body fit snug against him. He needed to taste more of her.

His hand delved into her hair, he cupped the back of her head. His arm pulled her in tighter against him. His mouth moved and explored the curve of her lips. Heat spread out, consuming his body as her teeth tugged at his lower lip.

A whimpering moan came from her throat as his tongue slipped over her lips. She ran her fingers up his neck and into his hair, scraping her nails across his scalp. Oliver's skin tingled along the path she left. How could he even think of marrying another when her touch made his world so right?

She pulled back from him with a gasp for air. He didn't stop. His lips trailed down her jaw and up to her ear his tongue snaking out to flick along the shell. He felt her body tremble against him before she shoved a hand between them and pushed him back.

Oliver felt dazed, confused by the gap and tried to reach for her again. Her hands covered her kiss swollen mouth. Blue eyes swimming with unshed tears stared back at him.

"Just give me.. I need a.. A moment, I need a moment." Felicity took another step back. Oliver forced himself not to pull her back into his arms. "Everything is happening so fast. Yesterday I was crashing your wedding, all three of them I might add. Who books three weddings? No don't answer that it was a smart idea."

"Why did you go?"

Oliver had to know, he had laid his heart out to her. He told her everything he had been holding inside since the moment they'd met. She said she waited for him, that she never stopped waiting. But could she still love him? Hearing she crashed his wedding gave him more hope than the incredible kiss they just shared. Could the kiss have been a goodbye? Was she letting him go? Did she want to go back to her boyfriend?

Even thinking the word sent acid burning up his throat.

"I went to see you. I needed to know why you never called. A lost phone and a lost opportunity." She whispered sadly.

"The phone was found. So can the opportunity. Even in my darkest moments I never gave up the hope of finding you. Don't give up now that I've found you."

Unable to resist any longer he stepped toward her. She held still, taking short shallow breaths. He placed his hands on her shoulders. His thumbs brushed over the smooth skin up her neck and cupped her jaw. Felicity closed her eyes and dropped her chin to her shoulder, nuzzling his hand.

"I don't know how to give you up. There is no way I could walk away from you. But I will not jump into bed with you. Not that I don't want you. The idea of seeing if we still have it, at doing it, is definitely on my mind. And that kiss made my toes tingle. I like the tingles, the chills, so much. I want to take this slow and get to know all those details." His Angel didn't give up on him? He can wait for her to be ready as long as he knows she still wants him.

"Are you hungry? I can make breakfast. Blueberry pancakes? The coffee should be ready. Cream and two sugars, right?" Oliver offered.

Felicity shuddered out a breath, "Perfect."

Oliver took her hand, she smiled at him when he lead her toward the smaller house.

The first day together they talked long into the night, Oliver constantly touching her, holding her hand, brushing her hair. He was never more than a few steps away. They had a constant need to touch each other making sure the other was real. They fell asleep talking. In the morning she found him watching her. He sighed her name like a prayer then pressed his lips against hers leaving gentle kisses over warm skin.

Felicity sank into his embrace, as he enveloped her in his warmth. The frenzy of their first reunion kiss had been amazing, but the soft sensual exploration healed her soul. Oliver's hand against her jaw gently held her in place. His nose brushed against hers before he pulled away.

"Good morning, Angel."

"You know my name now, so?"

"You will always be my Angel, Felicity."

"Are you always going to be this sappy?" She said with a beaming smile.

"Every chance I get."

"I can live with that."

She tugged him closer, until he hovered above her. Felicity wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him down for a kiss. Oliver smiled against her mouth his deep chuckle rumbled in his chest.

He pulled back, looked into her eyes, his smiled widened before he pushed back until he was off the bed and turned away from her. Felicity tilted her head and watched him. She was confused but she wasn't going to miss a chance to see his cute butt bent over in a pair of jeans.

"Oliver?"

"I told you about the phone, losing it, finding it but I started looking before that." His back was still turned away from her while he rummaged through his suitcase. "Do you remember this?"

Oliver placed a small wooden box on the bed. Felicity reached for it, smoothed her hand over the ceramic tile before lifting the lid. Inside she found a dried flower, movie stubs, carnival tickets and a stack of photos. She slowly shuffled through the photos, some she had copies of on her lap top, but others she had never seen. Felicity smiled and cringed at the photo with the fish.

"My first and last time fishing. I was nervous but excited until this sucker started flapping. I almost dropped him. Or is it a her?"

"Anytime you want to try again, I will take you."

Felicity shuddered. "Maybe I will go for moral support and sunshine."

"Is the support for the fish or me?"

"Yes," Felicity exclaimed with a large grin.

Oliver laughed and sat beside her on the bed. They talked about the different pictures, places they'd explored and planned to go to again. Felicity stopped on a photo of her next to his Bronco. Oliver took it from her hands and examined the photo closely.

"I can't believe Robin tried to keep us apart." He sighed and placed it in the box.

Felicity pulled the photo out and shook her head. She loved how he kept the Bronco's name but she knew that Robin needed more credit in bringing them back together.

"I'm the first to admit, I thought Robin was out to get me. My knuckles had a little scar from the first time I tried to touch her. But without her I might not be here." Felicity admitted with a small smile.

"What do you mean?"

"I lost something, which I thought was important but it wasn't what I thought it was." She waved her hand at his confusion. "I tore apart my house looking for said something and found a jump drive. The drive had pictures and one of the pictures was of Robin and you. I used that picture to find you. Up until then I thought I was over everything. I had a boyfriend, a business, a quiet life. But after seeing the picture it showed me that I'd had the key to finding you all along. To finding the piece I had been missing."

She slipped her hand in his, he interlocked their fingers and brought her hand to his mouth.

"Looking at the pictures, seeing the girl I had been, seeing you, changed everything." Felicity laid back dug her hand in her pocket and pulled out a silver chain. "I had lost my true North, lost my ability to see the stars and I forgot to live. But I did keep this."

She placed it in his palm. He sucked in his breath, lifting up the silver chain and revealing the tiny star pendant he made.

"I wore it everyday until the chain snagged and broke the clasp. I took it as a sign that we had been a shooting star fading into nothing. But I couldn't part with it. I couldn't commit to Dylan, oh I need to call him, he has my phone." Felicity mumbled before waving the thought away. "He doesn't matter because I couldn't forget you and I couldn't stop loving you."

"I don't want you to stop."

Oliver reached into his pocket, and pulled out frayed strings. Felicity's skin prickled, her eyes watered and her face flushed. She knew what he was offering her. She had spent hours trying to remember the proper knots, watch video after video until she gave him the simple symbol of her love.

The strings were warm from his pocket, some of the knots had loosened. The color had faded.

"I kept this on until I couldn't tie the ends together. It was my link to you. My reminder that somewhere out there was the woman tying me together. Whenever I was tested or challenged, I had this with me to keep me grounded. You were always with me."

Felicity laid across him and her arms around his shoulders. Her face pressed in the hollow of his throat. He wrapped his arms around her, and they sank into each other. The years of separation melted away.

"No more running, no more hiding behind half truths, I want this, I want you. I'll stay as long as you'll have me. It won't be easy but we'll be together. One condition though, no more talk of ex-boyfriend Dean after we get your phone." Oliver spoke with a conviction in his voice.

Felicity snuggled closer, nodded her head, her throat dry and choking on her words.

"I met him you know, Dave?"

"Who?" Felicity chuckled.

"Your, you know, Dennis." A look of annoyance on his handsome face, Oliver stopped like he couldn't get the word boyfriend out.

"When or where did you meet Dylan?" Curiosity on how that meeting came about, Felicity had to know the details.

"I was in San Francisco yesterday looking for you. He was trying to get Jimmy to tell him when you'd be back. He is a great doorman by the way."

"Oh, so you remember Jimmy's name but not Dylan's?" Felicity giggled.

"Knowing your doorman is important. I plan to see him again as often as possible."

"Oh you are? And how will you do that if you live in Starling City?"

"Move to San Francisco, QI is always looking to expand."

Felicity sat up placed her hand on his shoulders, and looked into his bright blue eyes.

"You would do that?"

"I told you I'm ready. I go where you go. I know we have a lot to figure out but I'm not walking away or chasing down the bus. I will be right by your side for every bump."

"I love you. We'll figure it out. I'm not expected back for a few days, so we can work out the specifics, because I can't walk away from you."

"I love you too."

"Oh I met your mother. She did not sound happy. I made a horrible impression." Felicity shuddered thinking of the meeting and the words Mrs. Queen uttered.

"I'm sure she'll love you once she gets to know you." Oliver replied with a wave of his hands unconcerned.

"Not so sure about that, but the only thing that matters is what we want." Nothing will take Oliver away from her again.

Oliver brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and cupped the back of her head pulling her closer. He rested his forehead on hers and took a deep breath.

"The scent of apples and cinnamon has haunted me for years. But now when I inhale, it smells like home. I can live anywhere as long as you're by my side." Tears form in her eyes with that heartfelt confession.

"Sounds perfect to me."


	11. Chapter 10

**AN: Here it is the last chapter of the story, I hope you enjoyed the ride as much as I have.**

 **Incline Village, July 2017**

"I have been looking forward to this for weeks." Felicity sighed as she fell onto the couch with her feet up on the armrest.

"So have I. Make some room, I'm the one that drove." Oliver groaned.

Felicity sat up so Oliver could sit behind her. As soon as he got settled, she picked up his left arm and laid her head in his lap. Oliver intertwined their fingers and placed both their left hands over her heart. Felicity looked down at Oliver's platinum wedding band. Close to five years later she still couldn't believe they were married. After they reunited in the summer of 2012 they were inseparable.

They spent a week in isolation, talking, discovering new aspects of their past, present, and figuring out what their future could be. The connection between them grew stronger and broken hearts healed.

When they returned to Starling City to arrange Oliver's move to San Francisco the news had broken on _the Queen Family Scandal._ Media reports from 'a close associate of the family' had been released, Oliver had jilted his bride for another woman. Yvonne was unreachable for questions. The unknown woman had yet to be discovered. Felicity and Oliver had prepared for the oncoming storm and had cleaned her internet imprint prior to leaking her pictures of them walking into the Queen Manor hand in hand swept through the media like wildfire. The paparazzi, media, and even Moira Queen's private investigator, only found what Felicity wanted them to find. Felicity was labeled a home-wrecker and a gold digger. Her own thriving business was ignored as well as her education. She was the most hated woman in Starling City for weeks. No one hated her as much as Moira.

The first official introduction had been an icy storm of harsh words and scathing glares. Moira remembered the conversation in the elevator and used that short meeting as cannon fodder. Moira made frequent public appearances refusing to speak about ' _that woman. She is nothing but_ a _fleeting fancy and will be out of her son's life soon'_. The tension between the women only grew when Oliver revealed he was leaving Starling City.

Thea Queen was suspicious at first, protective of her brother and worried he was blinded by infatuation. To Oliver's chagrin, it took a picture of his long hair to break the ice between Thea and Felicity. They bonded over teasing him about what his serial killer nickname would be. Thea gave them her blessing and told Oliver later that she had missed seeing him smile and anyone that made him that happy was worth giving a chance.

Felicity and Oliver refused to talk to the press, but made their own statement by going out to public dinners with Oliver's closest friends.

Tommy called her Angel until Oliver growled in his face to back off. The pictures hit the internet in seconds with startling headlines of _Bro chose the Hoe_ or _Merlin and Queen battle over the Blonde_ '. The next day a picture on Tommy's Instagram account shut up the media fall out. Felicity stood snuggled between Oliver and Tommy, all three of them laughing, with the caption _Smoaking Billionaires._

John and Felicity hit it off instantly. She listened and expanded on his ideas for a security firm he wanted to create. She persuaded the Diggle family to join them in San Francisco to continue in private security expanding with Smoak Solutions' technology backing them up.

Oliver encouraged Diggle to make the move and promised that he would be the first person to invest. Together the three of them started a business proposal for a company named Arrow.

Felicity and Oliver also went out on dates, held hands in the park, showed the world that this was who they were they were happy and together. Seeing how happy and boring they were, the press soon tired of following them around. Yvonne's generosity was the final piece of the puzzle.

Yvonne had seen the public outrage and demanded the couple meet her in a public place to set the record straight. Felicity had been nervous to meet the other woman until Yvonne engulfed her in a warm embrace. The conversation had been easy and light with no hard feelings. Halfway through the dinner Yvonne grabbed their hands with a soft smile and happy tears she told them how happy she was they found each other again. She wished them years of happiness and her own wish to find her own love. The pictures from the dinner combined with Oliver's constant perm-a-grin, as Thea called it, slowly changed the public view.

Felicity flew back to San Francisco a week ahead of Oliver. The two months spent in Star City had been a roller coaster. She'd been in constant contact with Curtis while she'd been away. Felicity used the separation as her time to work on an algorithm for Arrow. She told Oliver she needed her babies to do her best work.

Oliver had tried to respect Felicity's wish to take it slow and not rush moving in together. He found an apartment near her fully furnished with a month to month lease. The week apart had been full of late night conversations with one or both of them falling asleep while holding their phones. By the time he had arrived at the City, she gave him a key and told him to get out of the lease.

The day Oliver moved in, Dylan made a surprise visit.

Felicity had only seen him a few times since returning home, the first was exchanging phones, another was a talk over coffee. Felicity explained, or tried to explain, her relationship with Oliver during that talk. Dylan had been quiet until the end of her story and he blew up, angry accusations were thrown at her. He stormed off without another word. Due to that angry encounter, Dylan's arrival at the apartment was awkward and Oliver refused to let him out of his sight. Apologies were made and a reluctant truce was made.

Curtis and Paul brought them champaign and Thai takeout for the housewarming gift. Felicity was happy the couple were able to work through their problems to be stronger than ever. Leaving them was to celebrate alone was their second gift to Felicity and Oliver.

Every night before bed Oliver told her he would marry her the moment she was ready, she told him she loved him, goodnight and she'd probably marry him in the morning. He'd kiss her and tell her 'as you wish'. Six months after reuniting on a cold San Francisco morning Oliver took her for a walk to City Hall and asked if she was ready. When she said yes, they walked inside. Felicity was married in her pink trench coat and a pair of jeans. The surprise nuptials were announced later in the day, after the family was contacted, with an Instagram photo of Oliver carrying Felicity over his shoulder, her face tilted up and laughing, the caption read _Just Married do not disturb_.

John and his family moved a few weeks later. With Oliver undecided on his position with Queen Industries, he threw himself into helping the family settle and helping John get backers and clients for Arrow. The three of them didn't always get along but they were a team and they worked well together.

Three years after they were married, Felicity gave Oliver a green box tied with a ribbon. Confused Oliver opened the box, inside was two different pregnancy tests and a white onesie with the words ' _Surprise you're going to be a Daddy'_ underlined with an arrow. Oliver looked up in shock to a nodding and crying wife.

Eight months later and, after a grueling eighteen-hour labor, Ada Simone Queen was born six pounds, three ounces, nineteen inches long. Oliver cut the cord. Felicity cradled her daughter to her chest while Oliver sat beside them his throat tight with overwhelming pride and fear he'd make a horrible father. Felicity looked up at him, smiled and asked if he wanted to hold his daughter. Ada was tiny in his arms and his world shrunk down to the palm of his hand.

Two-year-old Ada ran around the house with her mother's brilliance and her father's tendency to find trouble. She loved snuggles and would do anything for cheese. Her long blond hair with soft curls tangled easily but Ada hated to have it brushed. She loved her nails painted but refused to have them clipped. Her daycare was on the ground floor of their office building and they never missed a chance to take her to lunch. She always kicked off her shoes as soon as her parents weren't looking. The little girl had a large castle frame bed with every toy imaginable but snuck into their bed every night. Ada had everyone wrapped around her little finger. Ada was the glue that repaired the relationship with Moira. One look at her granddaughter and Moira was in love. Felicity loved Oliver enough to forgive Moira and welcome her into their circle.

The anniversary trip to Tahoe was their first week away from Ada since she'd been born and Felicity couldn't deny she already missed her girl. Aunt Thea and Grandma Moira would take care of Ada and spoil her over the next week.

"We should call Ada and tell her we are here." Oliver echoed her thoughts.

"Missing her already, Daddy?" Felicity teased.

"You can't fool me I saw you checking your phone every twenty minutes on the ride up here."

Felicity pursed her lips and tilted her head back to look at him. His hair was a bit longer on the top, his stubble had hints of grey, he had laugh lines around his eyes, he was the sexiest man she had ever seen. Their love grew stronger with each passing year after loving him for almost ten years. Not a day went by where they didn't tell each other how much they loved each other. They almost lost this love of a lifetime making them grateful for each day together. Oliver brushed his thumb under her jaw and bent his head down to kiss her. Felicity met him halfway.

"You know we are alone, kid, and work free for a whole week?" Felicity whispered against his mouth.

Oliver smiled, "I noticed. Did you have any thoughts on what you wanted to do, Mrs Queen?"

Felicity nodded while she pushed herself up until she straddled his lap. "I might have had a thought or two about what we could do to pass the time." Her fingers trailed over his chest, his shoulders and down his arms. Oliver's thumbs rubbed little circles against her hips. "We could read a book," Oliver pouted much like their daughter and shook his head. "How about watching a rated R movie?"

"You always fall asleep twenty minutes into the movie, unless it's a Disney movie, then you sing along to the music."

Felicity arched back her eyebrows raised, "I seem to remember you singing right along with me."

"I can't help it. I've lost count at how many times we've watched Frozen." Oliver rolled his eyes.

Felicity rolled her hips watching with fascination as Oliver's eyes darkened and his jaw tightened. His fingers spread over her ass and pulled her tight into his arousal. Felicity dragged her finger over his cheek, rolled her hips again. Oliver's hand ran up her back cupping the back of her neck and pulled her into a possessive kiss. She nipped and sucked on his lips, her hands tugged on his hair.

Oliver's hand slipped under her t-shirt. Felicity sat back and ripped the shirt over her head, Oliver followed her lead. They were frenzied, clothes and shoes flying off while their hands and lips explore exposed skin. If felt like weeks since had a chance to touch. Felicity needed him inside her filling her making them whole.

Stripped down Felicity straddled his naked lap, she stroked his cock her thumb sliding over the tip. Oliver cursed his head fell back against the couch, his eyes closed.

"Look at me," Felicity's breathy voice demanded.

Oliver opened his eyes, sunlight shines around her making her hair shiny and her blue eyes dark with desire and love.

"You're so beautiful, Angel."

"Say my name."

Felicity lined his tip into her entrance then lowered herself down.

"Fel-icity," Oliver groaned out.

She rolled and rotated her hips and Oliver thrust up into her tight warmth. Felicity held his head against her chest while Oliver licked and sucked her nipple into his mouth. His other hand slipped between their slick bodies, his thumb pressed down on her clit. Felicity's head snapped back she held onto his shoulders as she rode out her orgasm. Oliver felt her body tremble and spasm around his still hard cock.

Felicity gave him a sated smile before she leaned down to kiss him. She hummed against his mouth when Oliver started to slowly thrust his hips into her again. He deepened the kiss while his hands cupped her ass and he stood up. Felicity squeaked, her body clenched around his cock, her arms tight around his neck. Oliver's cock pulsed up a few strokes while he held her before he spun around and laid her down on the couch. Never slipping out, he gave her a cocky wink and smile before he started to move again.

"I want to hear you, baby. Let go," Oliver grunted.

At home they were forced to sneak away, keep their moans and cries quiet, fearing they would wake Ada. Here they were free to explore and make as much noise as they wanted. Felicity had been biting her lip, her face turned into the pillow. Oliver lifted her hips giving her freedom to match his thrust. Her gasp and moan filled the house along with the erotic sound of their bodies seeking pleasure in each other.

Oliver closed his teeth gently onto her shoulder, his hand on her breast. Felicity fingers rubbed rapidly over her clit. She called out his name, begged for him to go faster, harder and never stop fucking her. Felicity husky voice in his ear pushed him over the cliff and with a final thrust, he let go. She followed him into the abyss.

He collapsed onto of her, her fingers trailed up and down his back. His head rested on her chest and he listened to her rapid heart beat. No matter where they lived he knew that this was his home, he belonged in her arms. She tightened her hold on him when he started to move off her.

"Not yet, I missed this." She mumbled.

She opened her legs a bit wider, wrapped an ankle around his and let out a deep shuddering breath.

"I love you, more today than yesterday," Oliver whispered into her skin.

"And you are still a sap. But you are mine and I love you too."

"Do you want to go take a shower and then call Ada?"

"You are reading my mind Mr. Queen." Felicity chuckled and started to push her heavy husband off her.

The shower took longer than expected since Oliver insisted on helping Felicity wash. But the video call with Ada eased the ache in both of their hearts. They took turns trying to get their daughter to focus on the phone call as she showed them each one of her new toys. At one point the phone was left on the floor and all they could see was the ceiling while Ada giggled and ran away. Felicity fought off her sadness when her baby said, "uve you, mama."

"I love you too baby. Listen to Grandma and Auntie. Daddy and Mama will talk to you tomorrow."

"Night princess," Oliver added before Ada pushed the red button ending the call.

Oliver brushed a hand over her shoulder and pressed a kiss to Felicity's cheek. He watched as Felicity pulled up a few photos and videos on her phone.

"Is it strange that I want to listen to Frozen, while you make dinner? It feels wrong not to have it playing in the background." Felicity felt like a part of her heart was missing without Ada dancing at her feet.

"I have the soundtrack in the car. I'll go get it." Oliver offered.

He didn't question Felicity's need to hear the familiar songs, he had his own separation anxiety and the little touch of their daughter would help them both relax. He also had plans to distract her after dinner.

Walking into the house he found Felicity seated at the counter prepping vegetables for him. He quickly turned on the music and joined her in the kitchen.

"I almost forgot to tell you, I talked to Tommy before we left." Oliver had been waiting for the right moment to tell her about the conversation. "He is taking Yvonne to Greece for their anniversary."

"Oh, that is so sweet. I know she's been dropping not so subtle hints for him about going on vacation. Does it ever bother you that your best friend and ex-fiancee are dating?"

Felicity had been the first to find out about Yvonne and Tommy after a business trip to Starling City. She found the pair huddled in a booth at lunch oblivious to the world. They started to make excuses after Felicity sat across from them clearing her throat. Felicity had begged for details in payment for her delayed silence to Oliver. She did insist Tommy promise he tell him before she returned to San Francisco.

After running into each other at a charity event, Tommy bought her a drink and they ended up talking all night. They met for lunch the next day, which lead to dinner and eventually to two years later they were adorably in love and living together.

"I might have been surprised at first, but it's never bothered me. They make each other happy and that's all I'd want for them. Tommy did tell me something else," Oliver whispered conspiratorially. He slid his arms on the counter and watched for his wife's reaction. "He bought her a ring."

Felicity squealed with happiness her eyes bright and her arms pumped up in the air.

"I knew it! When is he going to ask her? Did he say? Does she know? Can I call her? Ahh, I'm so excited for them. Didn't you once promise to take me to Greece?" Felicity rapidly threw questions at him.

Felicity danced in her chair and Oliver chuckled.

"He's going to ask while they are in Greece. No, she doesn't know, though she is smart enough to suspect something. And no, you can't call her. This is why I waited to tell you, so you can avoid the temptation to call. They leave the day before we get back. I already told Tommy he had to give a full report when they get back. I believe you chose the movies over Greece. So my beautiful wife, how about a glass of wine with dinner?"

Oliver walked around the counter to wrap his arms around Felicity. She leaned into his warmth her heart full and her mind relaxed. She remembered their talk about the trip, at the time she thought it had been a joke but now she wondered where'd they be today if she'd gotten on that plane. She had left it to fate and took a chance following her heart. It had been the best choice of her life and she would never regret the road to get them back where they belong: together. She might not believe in soulmates but she knew her's belonged with Oliver.

"No wine for me. What I would really like is a banana milkshake?" Felicity said thoughtfully.

Oliver grunted and stepped back. She felt him behind her and resisted the need to turn around. He slowly walked around the counter his eyes conflicted. She saw confusion, hope, and a touch of apprehension.

"Felicity, you can't stand banana milkshakes." Oliver's finger and thumb rubbed together. "The only time I ever saw you drink them was when you were pregnant with Ada."

Felicity took a deep breath and pulled out a green box tied with a ribbon and placed it on the counter. Oliver looked at the box and his confusion melted away to reveal a brilliant smile.

"Well, aren't you going to open it?" Felicity sighed.

Oliver was around the counter and pulling her into his arms. He kissed her soundly before pressing his forehead against hers. His hand rested low on her stomach and hers covered his. She doesn't know why she had been nervous to tell him. They had been talking about expanding the family while looking into buying a home with a backyard and more rooms.

"The banana told me everything I needed to know. Another baby, wow. Felicity, you have made me the happiest man in the world. I love you so much."

"Oliver you have given me my world. You make me a better person since you became a part of my life. I love you and I love our growing family."

"I can't wait to tell Ada she is going to be a big sister," Oliver said wistfully.

Felicity wrapped her arms around him and held him close. Oliver brushed kisses up her jaw and nuzzled her nose.

"I love you more today than yesterday, Oliver." Felicity felt her chest tighten and her eyes fill with happy tears.

"Now who's the sap?" Oliver gloated.

"Still you, but I'm learning."


End file.
